Iowa’s Caitlin Clark gets Diana Taurasi comp from Rebecca Lobo amid historic season

Rebecca Lobo compares Iowa’s Caitlin Clark to Diana Taurasi, calling her the best in 20 years.

Iowa women’s basketball player Caitlin Clark and WNBA player Diana Taurasi, with ESPN basketball analyst Rebecca Lobo off the side with a speech bubble saying “She’s just as good”
Iowa women’s basketball star Caitlin Clark has not only become a national favorite but also attracted high praise from none other than Rebecca Lobo, a UConn women’s basketball great and ESPN analyst.

Lobo, having witnessed her fair share of basketball prodigies, recently expressed her admiration for Clark’s game on ESPN, after the Hawkeyes defeated Rutgers 103 to 69 on Jan. 5. Lobo compared Clark’s offensive skills to Diana Taurasi of the Phoenix Mercury.

“I think she’s the best offensive player we’ve seen in women’s college basketball in 20 years, since Diana Taurasi,” Lobo said on ESPN, via Christine Butterfield of CT Insider.

Clark’s statistics speak for themselves. Averaging 31.3 points, 7.1 rebounds and 7.6 assists per game, and with a 39.7 percent three-point shooting accuracy, she leads in numerous offensive categories. She’s the two-time NCAA scoring leader and recently surpassed a milestone, scoring over 3,000 career points. Her total of 3,218 points places her fifth on the NCAA Division I career scoring list, chasing the record of 3,527 points set by Kelsey Plum.

Despite these remarkable achievements, Clark’s journey is distinct from Taurasi’s. While Taurasi clinched three consecutive NCAA titles with UConn and boasted an impressive college record, Clark has yet to attain a similar team success. Last year, she led the Hawkeyes to their first-ever NCAA Championship game, though they fell to LSU.

Lobo’s admiration extends beyond mere statistics. She emphasized Clark’s shooting range, describing it as a game-changer, evident when Clark’s near half-court buzzer-beater secured a victory over Michigan State on Jan. 2.

“The real separator to me is the range that she has on her shot because it makes her that much more unguardable,” Lobo said. “Offensive player, best offensive player we’ve seen in 20 years.”

Lobo said on social media this week that Clark surpasses other outstanding offensive talents from the last 20 years, like UConn legends Maya Moore and Breanna Stewart, as well as Seimone Augustus, Elena Delle Donne and Plum.