While Caitlin Clark already stands among the WNBA’s biggest stars just a fraction of the way through her rookie season, the transition from college basketball to the professional ranks has not come without its share of adversity. From standing on the receiving end of cheap-shot fouls to her exclusion from the Team USA roster and the endless public discourse surrounding her game and status as a sports icon, Clark continues to face challenges on her rise to superstardom. 

Tennis legend and women’s sports titan Serena Williams offered words of advice to Clark amid the turbulent start to her pro career, imploring her to continue to turn a deaf ear to the outside noise. 

“I just love that she tries to stay grounded and she says that she doesn’t look at her social,” Williams said in an Associated Press interview. “I get it. I don’t either. I think it’s so important to continue to do what she’s doing, no matter what other people do. If people are negative, it’s because they can’t do what you do, basically. Hopefully she’ll continue to do what she’s doing.”

Clark said she has “no disappointment” with her Team USA snub ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics, but the outcry in her defense is arguably warranted given the eye-catching production she logged across her first 14 professional games. The superstar guard tallied 15.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 6.0 assists per contest to open her career, and she already has a pair of 30-point outings on her ledger.

If there are any knocks against Clark’s early performance with the Indiana Fever, they stem from her shooting efficiency and ball security. The college sharpshooter connected on a modest 36.7% of her field goal attempts with the Fever and hit from beyond the arc at a 32.2% clip. She also averages a league-worst 5.5 turnovers per game.

Clark is one of the biggest sources of attention in the WNBA, but established forces in the league have not always welcomed her with open arms. UConn coach Geno Auriemma said the former Iowa star is “being targeted” by league veterans amid the hard fouls and vocal warnings she received from some of the sport’s top stars.

Clark broke numerous records during her four-year college career at Iowa, where she became a household name and helped to bring women’s college basketball further into the mainstream. The Hawkeyes drew record TV ratings for their Elite Eight, Final Four and national championship game appearances.

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With her 3,951 career points at Iowa, Clark became the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer across both men’s and women’s basketball. Her historic career made here the obvious choice for the No. 1 overall pick in this spring’s WNBA Draft.