Caitlin Clark Shares Unexpected Name as Key Inspiration

Now in Year 2, a more muscled and experienced Clark finished with 8.4 assists a game as a rookie last year. While announcing the Fever's season opener against the Chicago Sky, WNBA legend and play-by-play commentator Rebecca Lobo noted she could see Clark averaging double-digits in dimes.

In a May 21 interview with "For The Win's" Meg Hall, Clark revealed the top passers that influenced her. Unsurprisingly, she name-dropped Seattle Storm legend Sue Bird first. 

"For myself, growing up, that was Sue Bird for me," Clark told Hall. "Sue was a player that I loved getting to watch. When I went to my first WNBA game -- don't tell SUe this -- but I was more so there for the Lynx, but they were playing the Storm at the time. So, I got to see her play."

The Fever star then named another former point guard whose game she believes has gone relatively unnoticed over the years: Ticha Penicheiro, who won a championship in 2005 with the now-defunct Sacramento Monarchs.

"I think Ticha Penicheiro, she's not a player a lot of people always talk about," Clark said. "But somebody that, if you watch her highlights and pull up some of the plays she had in the league, she was making crazy passes, like, behind her head and stuff, so those are probably some of my favorite assisters," Clarks added with a grin.

Penicheiro led the league in assists seven different times, and it was her rookie record of 224 assists that Clark broke in 2024. Check out some of her absolutely ridiculous handles below:

Next up, Clark and the 1-1 Fever head to Atlanta to face the Dream on May 22. More dimes will surely be dropped.