Caitlin Clark Backed by Michael Jordan’s Ex-Teammate & WNBA Great After Criticism for 0–6 Shooting vs. Italy

Caitlin Clark and Team USA recorded their worst offensive performance in nearly three decades against Italy.

Caitlin Clark Backed by Michael Jordan’s Ex-Teammate & WNBA Great After Criticism for 0–6 Shooting vs. Italy

Critics called out Caitlin Clark's performance against Italy (Image via Mirror US Sports/X)

Fans, both new and old, have never seen a game where Caitlin Clark did not convert a single field goal. When that moment finally came against Italy at the FIBA World Cup, they could not digest it.

She was on the floor for 18 and a half minutes, yet could only muster up one measly point. That came about when she missed one of the two free throws she earned.

The Indiana Fever superstar did manage to grab four rebounds, but could only record one assist, which again was a far cry from what everyone is used to watching from her.

To those who have followed her WNBA career, this was the worst offensive performance since her infamous 10-turnover WNBA debut game. Those horrifically low numbers led to questions about whether the Iowa native folds under pressure.

Why all these fans worry about CC stats on the USA woman team they never care about winning and she do.. go kick rocks.

Ron Harper wrote on X

This was a five-time champion who has played alongside Michael Jordan. Ron Harper believes that those criticizing Caitlin Clark never cared about women’s basketball in the first place.

There is enough evidence that the point guard cares more about winning than her stats. He has a point, as whenever she sets records in the WNBA, the 24-year-old does not talk about it and instead discusses the team’s win. That should be enough for fans to ease off Clark, as she has proven that she can lead teams to wins.

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Tina Charles defends Caitlin Clark’s stats

If these social media narratives about Caitlin Clark’s horrendous display against Italy were loud enough for a former NBA star to write about, they were definitely going to reach the studio covering Team USA’s exploits at the FIBA World Cup.

Caitlin Clark dictating play
Caitlin Clark dictating play (Image via Park Mu Doon/X)

I think it’s a little bit unfair to isolate Caitlin Clark from Team USA… She had rhythm in the first game, so did Team USA. She struggled to find that rhythm, and so did Team USA.

Tina Charles said

This was Tina Charles, who had just retired from professional basketball, making it clear that Team USA collectively performed poorly. Therefore, it is not right to just single out Clark, even though both her scoring and passing disappeared.

The UConn legend reiterated that the superstar point guard needs to slow her game and figure out how to beat opponents even when her shot is not falling. Clark has done that in the past when opposing teams send multiple guards to stifle her. But against Italy, the entire team was out of sync, and not just the fault of one player.

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Caitlin Clark bounces back with decent performance against Czechia

Ahead of their final group game, there was no doubt that Team USA had to shed that poor outing against Italy and return to form. Caitlin Clark probably had the same memo as she came out to perform decently.

In this game, Kara Lawson left the Fever guard in the game for nearly 22 minutes. That meant the head coach was looking to give her younger players time to get back into rhythm before the knockout stages arrive.

Clark repaid that faith by registering nine points and seven assists. Her struggles from the three-point line did continue, as she missed five of her six attempts. The only one she made was when the game was already in Team USA’s bag, which meant Czechia was not defending her that aggressively.

The three-time All-Star still has to improve her game against pressure, as the knockout stages will see plenty of physicality and aggressive defense. But getting back to some decent scoring and playmaking was the first step. Now she has to work on the rest.

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