Dallas Mavericks‘ Luka Doncic led several NBA stars, who sent a congratulatory video message to Caitlin Clark after the Indiana Fever star won the WNBA Rookie of the Year award.
“Caitlin, congratulations on an amazing season. Rookie of the Year is a big honor. You deserve it. Congratulations,” Doncic said in the video message.
Doncic was the unanimous choice as the NBA Rookie of the Year during the 2018-19 season as he received first-place votes on all 100 ballots.
Clark nearly did that too, however, one vote went to her rival, Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese.
Nonetheless, it was an unprecedented season for Clark, who was doubted her college game would translate well in the pros.
Clark broke several records.
Among the highlights of her sensational rookie year is recording the most assists in a single game and a single season. She was the fastest WNBA player to reach 300 career assists.
At 22, Clark was the youngest player in WNBA history to lead the league in assist per game. She was also the first player to lead the league in assists and 3-pointers made.
Clark is also the first rookie to to record a triple-double with 19 points, 13 assists, 12 rebounds) on a July 6 win over the New York Liberty. She finished the season with two triple-doubles, another first by any WNBA player.
Clark’s 337 points were also the most points by any point guard in a single WNBA season. She was also the first WNBA rookie to be named Player of the Month and Rookie of the Month in the same month and to produce 20+ points, 15+ assists and 5+ rebounds in a game.
More NBA Players Congratulating Caitlin Clark
Aside from Doncic, several NBA players also congratulated Clark for her achievement.
Indiana Pacers stars Tyrese Haliburton and Myles Turner, along with Obi Toppin, also did a video message.
“Congratulations, Caitlin, for real,” Turner said. “Man, it’s been a pleasure watching you play this year, not only living up to the hype, but doing something I haven’t seen here in years, and getting back to the playoffs. So congratulations on Rookie of the Year. [The] best is yet to come. Go Fever!”
“Congratulations on winning Rookie of the Year,” Haliburton said. “Not a surprise by any means. [I’m] very happy for you. [I] wish you continued success.”
“Just wanted to say congratulations on winning Rookie of the Year,” Toppin said. “You definitely earned it and it’s a lot more accomplishments to come.”
2006 NBA Rookie of the Year Shares Advice to Caitlin Clark
San Antonio Spurs point guard Chris Paul, who was the NBA Rookie of the Year in 2006, also congratulated Clark in a video message on Instagram.
“Congrats! For you to do what you did this past season, with all the crazy expectations you had coming out of college, you were better than advertised,” Paul said.
The 12-time NBA All-Star also went the extra mile, sharing pieces of advice coming from his own experience as a Rookie of the Year winner.
“First of all, that’s a huge achievement, and you should be proud,” Paul continued. “But going forward, I think the biggest thing I tried to focus on was getting stronger.
I wanted to get stronger. I wanted to get faster. I wanted to be better on defense. But more than anything, I tell you, the biggest people that I leaned on with my family, my support system. That was always a group that kept me grounded.”
0 Comments