Paige Bueckers has lived up to the hype as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft.
When the Dallas Wings chose Bueckers out of UConn, fresh off a national title, they were hoping to get a superstar. It certainly appears that they have.
And one point that drives that home is a look at the stats of Bueckers versus Caitlin Clark's stats this season for the Indiana Fever.
Clark has missed a bunch of time with injury, but that doesn't stop averages from being a useful comparison tool, and Bueckers holds the edge in almost every category.
Start with points: On the season, Bueckers is averaging 18.3 points per game. Clark is at 16.5.
Bueckers has averaged 1.8 steals per game to Clark's 1.6.
The lanky Bueckers has also put up 0.6 blocks per game, relative to Clark's 0.5.
Clark turns the ball over more than anyone in the WNBA, at 5.1 turnovers per game. Bueckers is down at 2.1 turnovers per contest.
On the season, Bueckers has shot better from the floor than Clark, at 45.2% to 36.7%.
That's also true beyond the arc: Bueckers at 34.6%, Clark at 27.9%.
At the foul line, too, Bueckers wins, with an 85.2% to Clark's 82.0%.
The only two categories of note that Clark leads in are assists, putting up 8.8 per game compared to Bueckers' 5.5, and rebounds, at 5.0 rebounds per game for Clark compared to 3.9 for Bueckers.
It's been a stop-and-start season for Clark, so this isn't to suggest that Bueckers is better than the Fever star.
Rather, it's to make the point that Bueckers has been really, really good as a rookie. For a team with the No. 1 pick, it's the kind of performance that gives you plenty of optimism for the future.
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