How Caitlin Clark's legacy is on the line in Iowa-LSU rematch
Caitlin Clark’s legacy was a much-debated topic throughout the college basketball season. As Iowa prepares for a rematch with LSU in Monday night’s Elite Eight, many asked where Clark will go down all time.
Sure, she led the Hawkeyes to the title game last year, a tough loss to LSU. She’s the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer as well.
But as Stephen A. Smith put it, Clark’s legacy is up in the air depending upon her performance from here on out.
“Of course it would mean the world if she wins,” Smith said on First Take. “But she can’t stink up the joint … Last year … wasn’t a bad showing but they still got (beat). They lost by 17 in the national championship game to LSU. If you just don’t have the team, you just don’t have the team. We get that. But you, the person that’s been compared to the Cheryl Miller’s the Diana Taurasi’s, the Breanna Stewart’s of the world and others.
“You can’t show up in a game of this magnitude, this rematch tonight and stink up the joint. Caitlin Clark has to show up. She has to play at an elite level. If she wins or loses but she plays at an elite level it’s not gonna matter. If she if she stinks up the joint and they lose, that definitely will affect her legacy in terms of the comparisons that were thrown out there.”
Basically the argument is Clark’s legacy is all-time even if she doesn’t win that elusive national title. She played well in last year’s title game but her team fell short.
Basketball analyst Andraya Carter agreed with Smith that Clark has to play well. But if she does, it could lead to a win anyway.
“And that’s the thing if they win, it will be because Caitlin Clark played well,” Carter said. “She has to play well. She has to be the legendary Caitlin Clark that we have seen for them to win. I agree Stephen A, the only way it would affect her legacy is if she played poorly. If she went out there and she was frustrated and she let the game get to her, the pressure get to her, then people might say oh, okay, we can’t really compare her to some of the greats that we’ve compared her to in the past.”
Either way, Clark going back up against LSU is going to be must-see-tv.
“She’s always going to be an elite scorer, but legacy as far as impact goes, it could hurt her if she plays poorly,” Carter said. “If she plays great and they win, it helps her legacy only because they have a shot at winning the national championship. For me, seeing great performances from Caitlin is phenomenal. It’s wonderful. It’s fun to watch.
“But in terms of her resume and her legacy, the only thing that can bump it up a notch because it’s already so good is a national championship. Getting to a Final Four is wonderful, but she needs the national title to take her legacy to the next level.”