Fever Must Improve Caitlin Clark's Shot Diet to Thrive
Caitlin Clark is able to impact the game even when she's not shooting at her most efficient clip.
This was on display yet again against the New York Liberty, when foul trouble took Clark off the floor in the fourth quarter, with the Liberty capitalizing and pulling away in defeating the Indiana Fever.
Clark's playmaking had put the Fever in position to win, but ultimately they came up short as the fouls and 11 missed layups cost them. Still, it was another contest where she wasn't at her best from the field. Clark finished 4-14 from the floor and 2-6 from three. She is 37.7% overall and 32.4% from deep so far in the 2026 campaign.
Sometimes these things just come down to making or missing shots, but in Clark's case, so many of her opportunities are of the difficult variety.
And she and the Fever need to find her a better shot diet.
way downtown for CC 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/RPKGxvDrsP
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) June 7, 2026
72% of Clark's attempts are coming from 16 feet to 3-point range per Basketball-Reference, and often they are tough stepbacks over the defense. Essentially half of her shots are from distance, and many from well beyond the arc. Clark has taken 32 shots from 27-32 feet according to HerHoopsStats, hitting 28% of them. She has also knocked down 2-3 from 32-37 feet.
These deep bombs need to remain a part of her repertoire—they are part of what made her a star in the first place. But there should be less strenuous shots mixed in.
Rim Attacks and Free Throws Could Help
Only about 14% of Clark's attempts are coming from 0-3 feet, which is down from her first two seasons (even the injury-riddled 2025 campaign) and a stark contrast to how she started the season.
In addition, she is attempting 5 free throws a game, good for 16th most in the league but a number that could still stand to rise.
This is something she is aware of, which she spoke about when talking about her own foul issues.
"I've gotta be leading the league, but I can't shoot a free throw so," Clark said after the loss to New York, simultaneously lamenting her own foul trouble while also hinting that she isn't receiving the benefit of a similar whistle on the other end. She took responsibility for this herself as well.
"I need to do a better job getting to the free throw line. Those are easy and free points and I haven't shot many free throws this year, just finding ways to make refs call the same foul in return on the other end," Clark added.
Caitlin Clark doesn’t put the blame on the refs for her foul issues pic.twitter.com/RQ3bjIBulg
— Robin Lundberg (@robinlundberg) June 7, 2026
A slight increase in attempts at the basket and from the charity stripe would go a long way in upping her efficiency.
It's a Team Effort to Get Clark Better Looks
How Clark's shot selection improves comes down to her, the coach, and her teammates.
First, Clark needs to not settle. She also could benefit from more freely taking shots like the floater she scored her first bucket versus New York with, that could open things up a bit. She has a penchant for floating to the left on outside shots and taking straight-line drives to the right on attacks. Expanding her shot profile would force opposing scouts to adjust.
Coach Stephanie White also needs to assist here.
"We couldn't get C[lark] loose very much at all and we gotta do a better job of finding ways to do that," White said after the Liberty loss.
Perhaps an increased dose of basic pick and roll action could help there, as would providing Clark more help on defense. She is working so hard on that end that it has to have an effect on her energy offensively.
Not to mention Clark's teammates need to do a better job of finding her when she is open off the ball.
"We got a little tunnel vision, I felt like, and we didn't move the ball at times offensively," White said, which was easily observable against the Liberty.
Kelsey Mitchell, in particular, missed Clark and other teammates on several possessions while finishing 7-for-21 from the floor herself.
SW: "We got a little tunnel vision. We didn't move the ball at times offensively. Our offense stalled at times"
— Ashwin (@Sudharsan_ak) June 7, 2026
That's it. Nothing about her fav being a ball hog all night long😭😭😭 https://t.co/QdWok5ZkDD pic.twitter.com/3exMDB7e0I
The good news is the Fever have an easier stretch of games coming up. Their next four opponents have a combined record of 15-26. And Clark still boasts a +5.6 net rating (the difference between the team's points scored and allowed per 100 possessions while she is on the court) per the WNBA's stats database, despite her shooting struggles. The offense also comes to a halt when she is not on the floor.
However, the Fever have fallen to 9th overall in offensive rating regardless—which shouldn't happen to a team featuring Clark, Mitchell, and Aliyah Boston.
One way to fix that is making sure Clark gets more advantageous opportunities.
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Robin Lundberg is a media veteran and hoops head who has spent the bulk of his career with iconic brands like Sports Illustrated and ESPN. His insights have also been featured on platforms such as Fox and CNN and he can currently be heard hosting shows for Sirius XM and on his popular YouTube channel. And now he brings his basketball expertise to Women's Fastbreak On SI and Indiana Fever On SI!
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