‘Clark’s turnovers were costly’: MVP voter explains decision on Caitlin Clark

On Thursday evening, Las Vegas Aces superstar A’Ja Wilson was named the WNBA MVP for the third consecutive season, winning the final vote in a relative landslide. Caitlin Clark, who had the best season of her entire career, only got one first-place vote as she finished fourth in the voting. Now, one MVP voter is explaining that choice.

While Clark might have had a prolific season, one voter explained that Clark’s turnovers and the fact that she was not the most impressive player on her own team this season had an impact on his decision.

Clark left off the ballot

In a post on X, WNBA MVP voter Dan Falkenheim revealed how he ranked the players on his ballot.

Falkenheim ranked Wilson at the top of the list, calling the decision “easy.”

“No player did more for their team on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor,” Falkenheim wrote in his post.

The rest of the ballot, he said, was “less easy.” Ultimately, he went with Olivia Miles in second, followed by Kelsey Mitchell, Breanna Stewart, and Paige Bueckers.

Clark, despite her dominant season, was left off his ballot entirely.

‘Turnovers were costly’

While this was undeniably a controversial decision, Falkenheim explained his thought process.

For starters, Falkenheim made it clear that he was only going to rank one of either Caitlin Clark or Kelsey Mitchell on his ballot, given that the Fever were not even a top-five team in the league.

“Deciding whether two players from the same team (a team that finished sixth) should be on the Most Valuable Player ballot, and choosing which one to pick, was difficult. It was reasonable and justified to vote for both Clark and Mitchell; I ultimately felt like picking one was the right path,” Falkenheim wrote in his post.

That explains why Bueckers and Stewart received votes over Clark. As for Mitchell, Falkenheim felt that she simply had the stronger season between her historic scoring numbers and Clark’s defensive struggles and turnover issues.

“I hope we don’t forget the season Mitchell had. No guard, other than Mitchell this season, has ever averaged more than 18 points per game on at least 64% true shooting. In words: Mitchell had the most efficient high-volume scoring season from a guard in WNBA history,” Falkenheim wrote. “I had to pick nits between her and Clark. It also felt like Mitchell was trusted with more difficult matchups on the defensive end and she wasn’t hunted as often as Clark was. And while Clark’s playmaking is otherworldly and turnovers come with the territory, I still felt like Clark’s turnovers were costly. (There are good arguments for Clark over Mitchell, too. Clark’s overall offensive creation burden is higher, she was also efficient, and it’s hard to untangle Mitchell’s success from Clark’s presence.)”

It’s a controversial opinion, but he explained his thought process thoroughly.

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