Caitlin Clark to face Liberty in Brooklyn, then compete against Sabrina Ionescu in 3-point contest

Caitlin Clark’s previous visit to Barclays Center marked a rare low point in her young career.

Then a rookie, Clark managed only three points on 1-of-10 shooting in her Indiana Fever’s blowout loss to the Liberty on June 2, 2024.

“As a team, we understand who the head of the monster is on that team,” Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu said at the time, “and we are trying to just make everything tough and difficult.”

That was the 11th game of Clark’s WNBA career, and more than a year later, it remains her lowest-scoring performance and her worst shooting effort.

Clark returns to Barclays Center for the first time since then on Wednesday night to face the Liberty under different circumstances.

The sharp-shooting phenom is a far more established player now, having lived up to the sky-high hype last season by winning Rookie of the Year and leading the Fever to their first playoff berth since 2016.

Clark’s second season has featured incredible highs, including a 32-point, nine-assist, eight-rebound eruption against the Liberty in Indianapolis on June 14 to deal the defending champions their first loss.

But this year has also come with a new set of challenges for Clark.

She missed five games with a left quad injury toward the beginning of the season, then another five due to a left groin injury.

After returning from the latter last week, Clark was averaging 12.0 points on 34.1% shooting in the three games before Tuesday night’s meeting with the Sun in Connecticut.

“I’m not worried about Caitlin’s shot,” Fever head coach Stephanie White said on Friday after Clark’s second game back from the groin injury.

“She’s recovering from injury. She plays heavy, hard minutes. Every defensive assignment, every defensive scout, she’s at the top of the scouting report, so the shot quality she’s been getting has not been great. We’re so used to seeing her make tough shots, and to be able to do that while she’s recovering from injury, it’s going to be more difficult.”

Clark’s shooting struggles go back even further, however, as she entered Tuesday shooting 29.5% from the field and 14.3% from 3-point range in her previous six games.

Perhaps the bright lights of New York will get her going.

Wednesday is set to be Clark’s third-ever game in Brooklyn and her first this season.

She is averaging 25.0 points, 9.5 assists and 6.5 rebounds per game against the Liberty this year, with the previous two matchups taking place in Indiana.

Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, who was Clark’s primary defender during last season’s 1-for-10 outing, is out for the season with a knee injury, while shot-blocking Liberty center Jonquel Jones remains sidelined with an ankle injury.

ALL-STAR WEEKEND

Wednesday’s game could function as something as a preview for Friday night’s 3-point contest to kick off All-Star weekend in Indianapolis.

That’s because Ionescu and Clark are both set to compete in the event, the WNBA announced Tuesday.

Ionescu won the 3-point contest in 2023, setting a record with 37 points in the final round. This will be Clark’s first time participating.

Also set to take part are Los Angeles’ Kelsey Plum, Washington’s Sonia Citron and Atlanta’s Allisha Gray, who won the event last year.

Liberty point guard Natasha Cloud, meanwhile, is set to compete in the All-Star skills challenge, as are Gray, Minnesota’s Courtney Williams, and Seattle’s Skylar Diggins and Erica Wheeler.