Caitlin Clark got the women’s scoring record. Where does that put her in the GOAT convo?
Catlin Clark is the women’s all-time leading scorer. Is she in the GOAT convo for women’s college basketball?
Caitlin Clark is bringing attention to the women's college basketball game like few before her. She's one of the most fun players to watch — her deep shooting and fiery attitude make her a “must-see” attraction any time she steps foot on the court. Clark’s now become the all-time leading scorer in the women's college basketball ranks, passing former Washington Huskies’ great Kelsey Plum. She's the surefire No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA draft. Some new fans are already calling her the best to ever play in college.
She’s led the country in assists and points twice. She may already be the best offensive player to ever play at the college level. Her 52 games of 30 or points is a Division I record, and she's the only player in the men's or women's game to record back-to-back 30-point triple-doubles. The list of accolades goes on and on. She's also a much better passer than she's given credit for. Most people know her for her audacious 3-point shooting, but she's sixth all-time on the assists list too, having just crossed the 1,000-mark. Clark is about to repeat as the Naismith Award winner, which would make her the first player to do this since former UConn great Breanna Stewart, the player who I believe is the current G.O.A.T. women’s college basketball player. Clark's career averages of 28.2 points, 8.0 assists, and 7.0 rebounds speak for themselves. The last thing missing on her resume is a championship, but if she gets one, how well would her resume stack up with other great women’s college basketball players? Let’s see.
Brittney Griner
1x NCAA Championship
1x Final Four Most Outstanding Player
Led Baylor to an undefeated season as a Junior
Griner was the most dominant center the college game has ever seen. She averaged 22.2 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 5.1 blocks per game for Baylor. Griner was a defensive force for Baylor. As a junior, she blocked more shots by herself than any other Division I team. She was also an unbelievable scorer. Her low post moves were unguardable.
Candace Parker
2x NCAA Championships
2x Final Four Most Outstanding Player awards
100-10 record at Tennessee
Parker stuffed the stat sheet with career averages of 19.4 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.9 steals, and 2.5 blocks. She did everything on the floor, acting as a two-way force at Tennessee. Parker was a two-time consensus national player of the year and two-time SEC player of the year.
Diana Taurasi
3x NCAA Championships
2x Final Four Most Outstanding Player awards
139-8 career record
15.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game
Taurasi has a lengthy resume. She won three consecutive NCAA championships from 2002-2004, and her UConn team went 39-0 in her final two seasons. She was named a First Team All-American in all four years of her career and won the Naismith College Player of the Year award in 2003 and 2004.
Chamique Holdsclaw
3x NCAA Championships
2x Final Four Most Outstanding Player Award
131-17 career record
Holdsclaw's Tennessee teams were the first to ever go undefeated and the first to win three consecutive championships. Her 3,025 points and 1,295 rebounds made her the all-time leading scorer and rebounder in Tennessee history. Holdsclaw was a two-time national player of the year, and a four-time All-American.
Cheryl Miller
2x NCAA Championships
3x National Player of the Year
Miller racked up the awards at USC. She was a four-time All-American, three-time Naismith College Player of the Year, and won two National Championships. She was prodigious statistically, averaging a double-double over her final three seasons at USC and averaging 23.6 points and 12.0 rebounds over her college career.
Breanna Stewart
4x NCAA Championships
4x Final Four Most Outstanding Player Award
151-5 career record
Stewart's college resume is unassailable. She averaged 17.6 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.5 steals, and 2.7 blocks per game. She's the first player to ever have 400 assists and 400 blocks. Stewart's awards are just as impressive. She won three straight Naismith awards and was the first player to ever be named to four consecutive Final Four Most Outstanding Player awards. Most importantly, she won a championship in every year of her college career at UConn. She had one of the most dominant runs in college basketball history.
Kelsey Plum
College Career Averages: 26.3 PPG, 12.5 RPG, 3.1 APG
Awards: Naismith College Player of the Year (2016-17), 2nd on NCAA All-Time Women’s Scoring List
Kelsey Plum was the best player in women’s college basketball in the 2016-17 season and won just about every award available for her efforts during her season year. As a freshman, she made an immediate impact by setting six school freshman records. As a junior, Kelsey played a key role in leading the Huskies to a strong NCAA tournament run. As a senior, she took her game to a higher level -- exploding onto the scene in a major way. Plum led the Huskies to a 29-6 record that year which included a run to the NCAA tournament’s Final Four. She averaged 31.7 points per game and finished her career with the NCAA scoring record of 3,527 points – breaking Jackie Stiles’ previous record. During her senior year, Plum scored 1,109 points – the NCAA women’s single-season record – and shot 43 percent from 3-point range. Plum won every award there was to win in 2016-17 and was an easy choice for NCAA Player of the Year after dominating an entire season.
Sabrina Ionescu
College Career Averages: 18 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 7.7 APG
Awards: Naismith College Player of the Year (2019-20),
Sabrina Ionescu filled the stands at Oregon throughout her college career. She won nearly every award available to her as a junior in 2018-19 and led the Ducks to their first Final Four appearance. Ionescu might be the greatest women’s college basketball player who never won an NCAA championship, but she gave it her very best effort. She averaged more than 19 points per game in two of her four seasons at Oregon and hit 42 percent from 3-point range during her four years with the Ducks. Ionescu is the NCAA’s all-time leader in career triple-doubles and the only player to record more than 2,000 points, 1,000 assists and 1,000 rebounds.
Notice how the first six names I mentioned all have something in common. Griner, Stewart, Holdsclaw, Taurasi, Parker, and Miller all have championships and Final Four Most Outstanding Player awards. Caitlin Clark’s college career is more comparable to that of Ionescu and Plum. Ionescu would’ve had a pretty good chance of getting a ring if the 2020 season had played on instead of getting canceled by COVID. For as good as Caitlin Clark is, she doesn’t have the postseason success to warrant consideration the in conversation for greatest women’s college basketball player ever. Even though this is the stance that I’ve taken, don’t let this take away from the fact that Clark is now the greatest scorer in the history of college basketball not named Pete Maravich.
