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A quietly busy offeason
From the outside, Clark’s offseason has certainly looked a little different from her peers.
Where some travelled overseas to keep on playing, or compete in a domestic three-on-three league, the Fever star opted out of playing basketball altogether, preferring to take a break after a whirlwind few months going from the high of college to the reality of the WNBA.
She popped up at a golf event with Tokyo 2020 Olympic champion Nelly Korda and legend Annika Sorenstam at The Annika pro-am in November, featured on an NFL panel with Serena Williams to discuss flag football and even linked up with Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift on several occasions, including at a Chiefs playoff game.
You might be forgiven for thinking that Clark switched off from hoops altogether, but, as Lewerke’s photo shows, the star has done anything but.
Behind the scenes and away from the cameras, the 2024 No.1 draft pick has been quietly evolving her game, which, first and foremost, has involved putting on muscle mass.
“I’ve had athletes who have said that, and then maybe when the work component shows up to actually achieve those goals, that’s where there’s maybe a disconnect,” Sarah Kessler, the Fever’s head athletic performance coach, told ESPN in an interview about Clark’s growth.
“But with Caitlin, she set those goals, and from the jump, I was seeing her in the weight room four to five times a week.”
Single-leg work, single-arm work, isometrics: all the strategies have been used to build Clark’s strength and help her navigate the physicality of the WNBA.
And while she has been working on building her body, time was also spent adding more weaponry to her arsenal.
According to ESPN, Keith Porter, a player development coach, began working with Clark in January, and the pair have explored the possibilities of ‘floaters’ and more creative finishes at the rim as well as touching up her footwork and midrange game.
Areas where the 2024 Rookie of the Year has struggled, she has quietly attacked without much fanfare or attention, all in preparation for her second year.
