Granted this was only the second time I have watched the ladies play and Clark definitely has a wealth of talent. But one thing that I feel that she needs to clean up are her hand gestures and wry smiles every time a call goes against her. Many referees have good memories and it could come back to bite her in the derrière many times over if she doesn’t get that under control.
Clark’s On Court Gestures
- Thread starter TJFant
- Start date
Thanks. The board will pass that onto her. If refs have good memories that may be all they have. Most of them are bad.
Her body language is horrible. She is extremely talented but the antics, in my opinion, will ware thin with her teammates at some point. They may have played the best the last 5 minutes of the game and she was not in a whole lot.
hope she didn't grow up watching Sam Prahalis....
She might be the worst I have ever seen.
She's a competitor, relax I love the fire!!!
I have seen all of her games. She is a generational talent but she is still a kid. Give her a chance to grow up. She is the best to ever play at Iowa (And I loved Megan) and she is amazing. She had an off game today with, I think, 25 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. Maybe cut her some slack.
I saw the same thing as well with her interaction with her teammates. She would drive, get fouled and as she went to the line her teammates would want to slap hands and she just kind of pushed them off. I think it is her intensity and not arrogance, but it is something she can benefit from by recognizing. Slap some hands. Take a breathe. Connect for a second with your mates and get ready to fight again.
It appears to me that Caitlin is just wired very tight and is extremely competitive. Maybe overly competitive. She is so intense that sometimes she may miss the fact that there are nine other players on the floor (4 of which are on her side). She has great talent, but it does take more than one great player to make a great team. The truly great players make all their teammates better.
I remember when Tom Davis had Ricky Davis on the team. He was a once in a lifetime talent, but he never really adopted the team concept. The team was better when he left for the league. However, he never really developed in the NBA to the level his talent could have taken him. Michael Jordan allowed himself to be coached until he didn't need it any more.
The rest of the team is more than chopped liver. There was more of a team unity the last 5 minutes and the Hawks pulled away. Caitlin's reaction to sitting was excellent and she was very supportive of what her teammates were accomplishing. She is still a very young lady and is not afraid of anything. With a little time and coaching she can help her teammates improve as she improves and the team can be really, really good.
Neither Caitlin nor Coach Bluder need my opinion. They know what they are doing. I certainly am glad that we have Caitlin. Glad we have her teammates and look forward to the ladies coming!
It appears to me that Caitlin is just wired very tight and is extremely competitive. Maybe overly competitive. She is so intense that sometimes she may miss the fact that there are nine other players on the floor (4 of which are on her side). She has great talent, but it does take more than one great player to make a great team. The truly great players make all their teammates better.
I remember when Tom Davis had Ricky Davis on the team. He was a once in a lifetime talent, but he never really adopted the team concept. The team was better when he left for the league. However, he never really developed in the NBA to the level his talent could have taken him. Michael Jordan allowed himself to be coached until he didn't need it any more.
The rest of the team is more than chopped liver. There was more of a team unity the last 5 minutes and the Hawks pulled away. Caitlin's reaction to sitting was excellent and she was very supportive of what her teammates were accomplishing. She is still a very young lady and is not afraid of anything. With a little time and coaching she can help her teammates improve as she improves and the team can be really, really good.
Neither Caitlin nor Coach Bluder need my opinion. They know what they are doing. I certainly am glad that we have Caitlin. Glad we have her teammates and look forward to the ladies coming!
I don't know if I would go that far of being the best to play at Iowa. Megan was great, but I am not even sure she is the best. Vivian had a lot of talented players.
Just because she’s the best player, doesn’t mean she knows how to be the best leader as a true freshman. That should come with maturity and with the right people in her ear about it.
Her fire and reaction to calls are one thing, but she probably needs to cool it a bit toward teammates and coaches too.
Her fire and reaction to calls are one thing, but she probably needs to cool it a bit toward teammates and coaches too.
I said it in another thread she acts like a spoiled brat actually. One heck of a player but you can tell her teammates don't think much of her antics. She is not doing herself any favors by acting like she does. Great player...lacking in the personality department. Hopefully she grows out of it, quickly
referees w good memories????
they can’t even remember how to apply the cylinder rule, how do you expect them to remember someone’s reactions
Caitlin is also the B1G assist leader as a Freshman, she's been the Freshman of the week 6 times, B1G player of the week,2 or 3 times and leads the conference in scoring as a Freshman. So yes, she is the best to play at the University of Iowa. She slaps hands all the time as they all do. Enjoy this player, don't pick her apart, and yes she is very competitive.
If her teammates and coaches and people that she has to work together with on a daily basis don't have a problem with her, then I don't care what anyone else has to say about her personality.
If the people she has to work with on a daily basis do have a problem with her, then I don't care how good of a player she is
If the people she has to work with on a daily basis do have a problem with her, then I don't care how good of a player she is
Reposting this from another thread:
I think people are making too big of a deal about Clark's body language. I compare it to Fran's sideline antics. People have criticized those for years, but there's no real indication they have an impact on his team. By most accounts, Frans players love playing for him and still support the program even after they leave. By most accounts Clark's teammates and coaches get along with her well. She doesn't sound full of herself in any interview I've seen. Some people just show their emotions good or bad.
I think people are making too big of a deal about Clark's body language. I compare it to Fran's sideline antics. People have criticized those for years, but there's no real indication they have an impact on his team. By most accounts, Frans players love playing for him and still support the program even after they leave. By most accounts Clark's teammates and coaches get along with her well. She doesn't sound full of herself in any interview I've seen. Some people just show their emotions good or bad.
i really think this entire thread is misguided. Clark is a competitor and she is very serious on the court. But off the court she is not that serious off of it. There was a great article in The Gazette last week about Clark being a jokester.
www.thegazette.com
Caitlin is very well spoken in interviews and her coaches and teammates always praise her in interviews. If there was an issue I trust the coaches to deal with it.
Sure, she gets upset when she makes mistakes or feels that she got a bad call. But it's not like she's up in the refs face or trash talking or yelling at her teammates. She shakes it off and get backs to work. I really think the team chemistry has been pretty good considering how young this team is. And it will get better as players continue to mature both as players and as young women. Clark and Taiwo subbed offense for defense in the fourth quarter, but Clark still played well over thirty minutes. Taiwo was in for defense because Madison Layden was eating the Hawks alive from three in the third quarter.
I can live with a few smirks sprinkled in over the course of the game honestly. Don't rag on the Clark for being intense. She's averaging close to double/double and playing great basketball. She's going to make mistakes because she's a freshman and naturally she's get's upset when mistakes happen. But it's a huge overreaction to start calling her brat or saying her body language is horrible. Let's not forget that's she's 18 years old and has close to no social interaction outside of basketball with all the classes being virtual and the players essentially locked down. So she's super invested in this team and wants to have success. What's wrong with that?
Caitlin Clark, contrary to on-court appearances, is a ‘jokester’ and a ‘goof’
IOWA CITY – You see the scowl, and you see the slap to the floor, and you know Caitlin Clark …
www.thegazette.com
Caitlin is very well spoken in interviews and her coaches and teammates always praise her in interviews. If there was an issue I trust the coaches to deal with it.
Sure, she gets upset when she makes mistakes or feels that she got a bad call. But it's not like she's up in the refs face or trash talking or yelling at her teammates. She shakes it off and get backs to work. I really think the team chemistry has been pretty good considering how young this team is. And it will get better as players continue to mature both as players and as young women. Clark and Taiwo subbed offense for defense in the fourth quarter, but Clark still played well over thirty minutes. Taiwo was in for defense because Madison Layden was eating the Hawks alive from three in the third quarter.
I can live with a few smirks sprinkled in over the course of the game honestly. Don't rag on the Clark for being intense. She's averaging close to double/double and playing great basketball. She's going to make mistakes because she's a freshman and naturally she's get's upset when mistakes happen. But it's a huge overreaction to start calling her brat or saying her body language is horrible. Let's not forget that's she's 18 years old and has close to no social interaction outside of basketball with all the classes being virtual and the players essentially locked down. So she's super invested in this team and wants to have success. What's wrong with that?
I have seen very little of her on tv and I mostly follow on radio, but I am kind of surprised by her lack of defensive effort. My goodness she is an offensive juggernaut but she seems to not guard at all the little bit I have seen. Looked like Lisa finally pulled her in the 4th qtr and the hawks quickly got the lead back with better defense. Are you seeing this since you have seen her play a lot more than I?
Her defense will improve with experience. A lot of defense is situational awareness and reacting and also having fresh legs. I would say Clark is average on defense. She does have quick hands and can guard one on one but she's not as familiar with playing zones or pressing and she had issues breaking the press on offense at times. It's not fair to say Clark was pulled in the fourth quarter. Bluder switched Clark/Taiwo out after TOs. Taiwo is older and more is a little more athletic at this point in her career. Clark will be fine with a full off-season of weight training, conditioning and practice. She was also probably a little gassed having played so many minutes and Taiwo had fresh legs.
CC's high school coach did not do her any favors. Her HS coach knows very little about basketball, which brought out the need for CC to be player and coach. She is a competitor whose drive forced her into a situation where she had to takeover. Much like an oldest child being forced into parenting her siblings, because her parents were awful at parenting.
Bluder knows what she is doing, so CC will adust now that she has does not have to be player and coach.
Bluder knows what she is doing, so CC will adust now that she has does not have to be player and coach.
She is an outstanding player and appears to be very competitive and expects the best from herself. However, she is still a young player and has some situational things she needs to work on. I am convinced she was out of the game towards the end as the ball was moving better and the team was getting great looks without her on the court. She is so good, she can get a look whenever she wants. She needs to pull back her aggressiveness at times and move the ball to get others good looks, and get her shot later in the shot clock. Bluder has a tough job, as you want her to play with confidence and be aggressive, but she may need to be more of a facilitator at times and make sure the ball is going inside/out.
Bluder has enjoyed a high level of success for 20 years with a high percentage of players many thought were not big 10 level talent! Her teams tend to lack athleticism, but that does not mean they can not play the game of basketball: there is a difference.
That’s why Iowa barely ever gets generational talented players who are ranked in the top 10. These players are highly skilled, talented, and can take over games. You think they get that way by not having CONFIDENCE, PASSION, COMPETITIVENESS, and Some cockiness on the court?? I’m gonna enjoy her taking iowa back to final 4. Get off her jock and be thankful she picked Iowa.
I really hope she doesn't I mean this is only her freshman year and we are a young and growing team and we have some good recruits coming into the future so I think it's only up from here. Plus she knows she has the chance to do something really special here
In her postgame Bluder said they changed defense in the 4th quarter and the last 5 minutes she felt the need to go with a more defensive oriented lineup. Caitlin had nothing but praise for Bluder for making that switch in her interview too.
I think anyone who is criticizing a once in a generation talent as a true freshman needs to chill a bit. Yeah she needs to learn a few finer points in the college game, but let’s not kid ourselves. She is the best player on this team and will be for the foreseeable future. Controlling her emotions will come as she matures . However I’m willing to live with a few minor issues, I’m just glad she’s a Hawk .
I am glad to hear this. Shows she has her priorities straight. I trust Bluder. She has won a lot of games.
Here’s your winner for idiotic post of the day! What’s next, your political slant for the day? Clearly, you have given up on her already and she has worn thin with you. Hopefully her teammates are more mature........
Seriously? How many women's basketball games have you watched?
There is a ton of talent on this year's team. Granted not every player is averaging double figures. Marshall is an excellent guard. Great defender and she can score if she's left open. She's gone off a few times in her career. Megan Meyer continues to get better every game but she saw limited minutes tonight. Kate Martin is leading the team in rebounds and has an excellent floor game. Not everything shows up in the stat sheet. I think Sharon Goodman might have more natural talent than Czinano but she needs to work on her footwork and finishing.
I honestly don't think there's any danger of Clark leaving. Give this team another year to gel and the whole team will be playing a high level of basketball. I think this year is particularly challenging as Bluder is trying to find playing time and reward her bench players so we might not be seeing the development of younger players that the Men's team has seen. The biggest difference between the women's team and the men's team is experience. Most of the Iowa men's bench has a year in the system or in the case of the Murray twins a year in prep school. Bluder's reserves are mostly true freshman and the one's with experience didn't play a lot last year because the team was senior laden. But Bluder's bench has flashed enough to show they have talent to compete in the Big. And Megan Meyer and Logan Cook has improved significantly and have both played well when given extensive minutes. To insinuate the other players are not Big caliber is frankly insulting. I really wish people would spend more time looking on the positive side of things instead of feeling the need to name call and hurl insults.
The Big is pretty deep on the women's side of things too and Iowa is very young. Despite a few losses, Iowa has been competitive in every game and continues to meet or exceed my expectations. This team will make the post seaon as a high NIT or bubble NCAA tourney team this year. And I expect this team will be in the mix for Big Ten title in 21-22.
The hardest thing for freshmen to learn is team defense. Clark's on ball defense is good to excellent, but her off ball positioning is not good on many occasions. She leaves her teammates exposed. She will improve and I'm sure Coach felt they would get more stops with Tomi in and Caitlin was having a rough afternoon shooting. Plus we had Warnock to carry the load today. Purdue beats most teams in the conference with that effort today. Let's celebrate a good win for the Hawks!!
Iowa is an interesting team. I wouldn't go so far to say as they have a ton of talent. They have some nice pieces that need to keep improving. Today's game was a huge step. The team to date has tended to stand around and wait for Clark to do something. When you have a player with her talent, that is natural but against some of the good teams Czinano, Warnock and Marshall go huge stretches of the game not being very involved.
When Iowa can take the step of figuring out how to effectively play with Clark they will be just fine. To maximize great players, the entire team has to figure out how to effectively play off that player. They aren't there yet. The end of the game today was good for all involved. The other players besides Clark had to step up and make plays without her on the floor, and they did. Clark got to see that there are good players on the team who can play.
As to the body language, I don't venture into that. Way too much can be read into things that we have no idea about. I'll leave that to Bluder and her team to figure out.
It's a matter of player's trusting themselves. I would say Martin and Marshall are both growing in confidence. And Megan Meyer is also growing in confidence as a reserve. I've said many times this season that player's need to look for their shot. The team is at it's best when the guards can drive and kick. I've seen players hesitate as well, either passing up good looks or not looking to drive. There's too much passing around the perimeter. That being said, the offense is still productive and is excellent in transition. I think there is more talent on this team than fans' give credit. But aside from Monica, the talent is mostly freshman and sophomores. Cook and Taiwo are the only other upperclassmen seeing the floor and they were both deep reserves last year.
When the players gain experience, and more importantly the confidence to know the right time to shoot or try and when to try and take the defender off the dribble, then others will see how much talent there really is. I've been watching Bluder's team for 20 plus years and I'm very confident in the future of this team and the talent level of this year's roster. I think that even with another really good class coming in, it will be hard to find minutes for freshmen next year.
your response is just as bad.... she is an outstanding talent and she is a true freshman that looks like she could stand to learn to keep her emotions in check....I’ve always believed your opponent gains an advantage when they sense you’re getting rattled.... mentioning that doesn’t mean someone has given up on her 🙄 and no one should expect her not to have some things to learn....seems to me she could stand to look for her teammates a little more at times and the more frustrated she gets the more she forces things..... but on a night when she seemed off she still scored almost 30 last I heard 7 boards 3 assists and I’m sure those went up.... felt like Bluder was sending a message but that’s for them to know
Did your dog write this? Are those ........ between thoughts pants by your dog?
