Current:Home > FinanceCould Caitlin Clark be the WNBA all-time leading scorer? Here's when she could do it-LoTradeCoin
Could Caitlin Clark be the WNBA all-time leading scorer? Here's when she could do it
View Date:2025-01-18 14:38:51
Caitlin Clark broke several WNBA records in her rookie season, but how long might it take for her to break some of the league's coveted career records?
The rookie sensation's season ended in the first round of the 2024 WNBA playoffs when the Indiana Fever were eliminated by the Connecticut Sun. It may have just been her first year, but Clark is already trending toward having one of the greatest careers in basketball history. Less than a year after she became the NCAA's all-time scoring leader, Clark set the WNBA record for most points in a season by a rookie, most assists in a season and the single-season rookie record for 3-pointers, among several others.
After such a stellar start, it's not crazy to think Clark will eventually become the career leader in stats like points, assists and 3-pointers. But how long would it take for her to do it?
Could Caitlin Clark break WNBA career points record?
In 2024, Clark averaged 19.2 points per game, playing in all 40 regular season games (playoff stats don't count toward career stats). In total, she scored 769 points in her rookie season.
This record is tricky to predict because it all rests on how long the all-time points leader continues to play. The leader is Diana Taurasi at 10,646 points. The Phoenix Mercury legend has played 20 seasons in the league and has yet to announce if she'll return for another one or retire.
In the scenario where Taurasi retires, Clark needs 9,878 points to break the record. If she kept at her current pace of 19.2 points per game, played in every game and the WNBA stays at 40 regular season games, Clark would become the WNBA all-time scoring leader in her 14th season − or the year 2037.
Of course, that accounts for her staying healthy and not missing a game, as an injury would prolong her chase toward the record. If she ups her scoring average and stays healthy, she could accomplish it before then.
Could Caitlin Clark break WNBA career assists record?
In 2024, Clark averaged 8.4 assists per game to achieve a total of 337, a WNBA season record.
The record holder for most assists in a WNBA career is Sue Bird at 3,234. If Clark kept at her current pace of 8.4 assists per game, played in every game and the WNBA stays at 40 regular season games, she would become the WNBA all-time assists leader in her 10th season − or the year 2033.
The caveat for this record is a player is close to breaking Bird's record. New York Liberty guard Courtney Vandersloot is 385 assists away from taking the record, which she is on pace to do in 2026 if she continues to play.
Could Caitlin Clark break WNBA career 3-point record?
In 2024, Clark averaged 3.1 made 3-pointers her game to knock down 122 shots behind the arc, the most in the WNBA this season.
Just like the points record, the 3-pointers made record belongs to Taurasi, who has a total of 1,447. If Taurasi retires and Clark kept at her current pace, played in every game and the WNBA stays at 40 regular season games, she would break the record in her 12th season − or the year 2035.
veryGood! (429)
Related
- Human head washes ashore on Florida beach, police investigating: reports
- Bobby Charlton, Manchester United legend, dies at 86
- States sue Meta, claiming Instagram, Facebook fueled youth mental health crisis
- S&P 500 slips Monday following Wall Street's worst week in a month
- Today Reveals Hoda Kotb's Replacement
- Fully preserved ancient river landscape discovered beneath Antarctic ice sheet
- To tackle homelessness faster, LA has a kind of real estate agency for the unhoused
- 'Squid Game: The Challenge': Release date, trailer, what to know about Netflix reality show
- Florida State can't afford to fire Mike Norvell -- and can't afford to keep him
- Parents describe watching video of Hamas taking 23-year-old son hostage
Ranking
- Chris Wallace will leave CNN 3 years after defecting from 'Fox News Sunday'
- Hundreds of photos from the collection of Elton John and David Furnish will go on display in London
- Storm Norma weakens after dropping heavy rain on Mexico, as Hurricane Tammy makes landfall in Barbuda
- Spain’s acting government to push for a 37½-hour workweek. That’s if it can remain in power
- 2 weeks after Peanut the Squirrel's euthanasia, owner is seeking answers, justice
- 'Our idol!': 92 year old's rim-to-rim Grand Canyon hike inspires throng of followers worldwide
- 8 officers involved in Jayland Walker’s shooting death are back on active duty, officials say
- UN official: Hostilities in Syria have reached the worst point in four years
Recommendation
-
Glen Powell responds to rumor that he could replace Tom Cruise in 'Mission: Impossible'
-
Michelle Obama to narrate audio edition of ‘Where the Wild Things Are’
-
Cyprus police say they have dismantled the third people smuggling ring in as many months
-
Cleveland Browns player's family member gives birth at Lucas Oil Stadium during game
-
Gold is suddenly not so glittery after Trump’s White House victory
-
Massachusetts GOP couple agree to state’s largest settlement after campaign finance investigation
-
Mary Lou Retton Discharged From Hospital Amid Long Road of Recovery
-
Unusual tortoise found in Florida identified as escape artist pet that went missing in 2020