NBA legend thinks Caitlin Clark will be knocked off perch by this college phenom

By any measure, Caitlin Clark has firmly entrenched herself as the most popular draw in women's basketball. The roots of her popularity were established in college, and have only multiplied since she's joined the WNBA.

Sportsnet Canada and many other outlets have delved into the unprecedented attention that Caitlin Clark has received during her time in the professional ranks.

Clark has quickly established herself as the WNBA's biggest superstar, but could that position be threatened after one season in the league?

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All indications suggest that Clark will be the face of the league for years to come. However, NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley believes another player will earn that mantra.

According to Athlon Sports, Barkley believes University of Southern California guard JuJu Watkins will be a problem when she enters the WNBA after a historic first year in college.

In her first season with the Trojans, Watkins put up historic numbers, setting the all-time national record for scoring by a first-year student with 920 points. In 14 games, she scored 30 or more points.

On the 'Throwbacks' podcast, Barkley said: "I tell all of them bitter, angry girls in the WNBA who are upset about Caitlin Clark to move over more because JuJu is special."

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"I want to give a shoutout to Caitlin for what she's done for women's basketball over the last three years. It's been incredible, and I wish those women would embrace it, but that girl JuJu is the real deal."

"Caitlin is a supernova, and JuJu probably is a better player," added Barkley, who believes the pair will dominate the WNBA together over the next decade.

Sports Illustrated reports Barkley said: "Those two women going to be running the WNBA for the next 10, 12, 14, 15, 20 years."

Watkins averaged 27.1 points in her opening season, leading the USC Trojans to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament. In comparison, Clark averaged 26.6 points in her freshman season at Iowa.

The USC guard still has a mammoth task of breaking Clark's NCAA record of 3,685 points, despite getting off to a better start in her college journey.

Luckily for Clark, the Indiana Fever guard has time to cement her legacy in the league. At 19, Watkins is not eligible for the WNBA Draft until she is 22.

Clark had one of the most significant WNBA rookie campaigns in history, hitting over 100 three-pointers, beating the single-season assist record (321), and securing the Rookie of the Year.

Clark even finished fourth in the MVP voting after securing 130 points in the race. She was beaten out by A'ja Wilson, who became the first player to record 1000 points in the regular season.

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She nearly became the first player since Candace Parker to win the Rookie of the Year vote unanimously, securing 66 of the 67 first-place votes, the other going to Angel Reese.

According to ESPN, Clark averaged 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, and a league-best 8.4 assists after playing in all 40 games. She scored 18.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 8.5 assists in the playoffs, but was swept in the first round by the Connecticut Sun.

Barkley's comments will probably incite some controversy. Despite that, women's basketball is clearly in the best place it's ever been, with more and more stars rising in the game.

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