Geno Auriemma FURIOUS Paige Bueckers WON’T BE #1 PICK – She’s No Caitlin Clark!

Remember when Geno Auriemma passed on Caitlin Clark for UConn many years back? And then he doubled down, doubting her skills coming into the WNBA when she got drafted by the Indiana Fever? Well, it looks like Geno is eating his words and his choices are backfiring big time. Meanwhile, Auriemma’s golden girl Paige Bueckers is struggling to keep up. Once the projected #1 pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, now she’s not even the clear best player in college basketball.

Geno Auriemma forced to walk back Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark claim at March Madness

Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma once claimed Paige Bueckers was a better overall college player than Caitlin Clark based on the eye test and statistics before Iowa defeated UConn in the Final Four

Geno Auriemma once claimed UConn star Paige Bueckers was a better college player than former Iowa star Caitlin Clark.

Long before the Hawkeyes and Huskies faced off in the Final Four in 2024, Auriemma had high praise for Bueckers, placing her above Clark despite the latter’s accomplishments during her time at Iowa. At the time of his proclamation, the legendary head coach turned to the eye test and how most statistics placed Bueckers over Clark.

“We have the best player in America,” he said at the time. “Just saying that because the numbers, in this world of analytics, the numbers say that she is. And the whole stat sheet say that she is. And everybody that watched knows it.”

Clark proceeded to score 41 points, dish out 10 assists and grabbed seven rebounds against Angel Reese, Hailey Van Lith and the rest of LSU to set up a date with Bueckers and UConn in the Final Four. As media spoke to Auriemma before Iowa and UConn’s matchup, the 70-year-old quickly walked back his comments after Clark’s supernova performance.

“It’s pretty remarkable,” he began. “Next weekend should be just as much fun as this weekend. Yeah, I hope Caitlin Clark had a personal agenda against LSU. I know there’s nothing personal between me and her. I don’t need to be seeing her drop 50 on us next weekend, you know?

“I love her. I think she’s the best player. Forget I ever said Paige [Bueckers] is the best player in the country. I think she’s the best player of all time. I don’t know whoever said, that I said, that Paige is the best player in the country.”

Geno Auriemma once claimed Paige Bueckers was the best college player over Caitlin Clark ( 

In the end, Clark had the last laugh, as she helped power the Hawkeyes past the Huskies, 71-69. Clark had a near triple-double against Bueckers and UConn, scoring 21 points, grabbing nine rebounds and dishing out seven assists while playing the entire game.

On the other side, Bueckers tied Aaliyah Edwards for UConn’s leading scorer, with the two dropping 17 points apiece in the two-point loss. Bueckers also had four rebounds and three assists as the Huskies were left to watch as the Hawkeyes advanced to the championship game against South Carolina.

Clark and Iowa fell to South Carolina, led by Dawn Staley, 87-75, with the star guard ending her collegiate career missing out on the biggest prize of her basketball life up to that point. Nevertheless, the sharpshooting guard was selected No. 1 overall in the 2024 WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever and had a historic rookie season.

Clark was the first rookie to record a triple-double, score 30 points and have 10 assists in a game, the first player in league history to earn the WNBA’s Eastern Conference Player of the Month and Rookie of the Month honors in the same month and led the league in assists per game, with her bright spot being a 19-assist outing against the Dallas Wings, which is a league record, among other accolades.

Meanwhile, Bueckers stayed one more year at UConn, hoping to lead the Huskies to another national title. The star guard will more than likely be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 draft, much like Clark before her just a year prior.