{"id":727392,"date":"2026-05-06T18:39:27","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T18:39:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/727392\/"},"modified":"2026-05-06T18:39:27","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T18:39:27","slug":"caitlin-clark-might-be-rethinking-her-nba-championship-pick-after-timberwolves-game-1-upset","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/727392\/","title":{"rendered":"Caitlin Clark \u2018Might Be Rethinking\u2019 Her NBA Championship Pick After Timberwolves’ Game 1 Upset"},"content":{"rendered":"

There are very few athletes in the NBA<\/a> or WNBA<\/a> right now who command attention quite like Caitlin Clark<\/a>. Whether she\u2019s preparing for the upcoming season with the Indiana Fever<\/a> or talking hoops during the NBA playoffs, fans want to know what the former Iowa Hawkeyes star is watching and who she believes can win it all.<\/p>\n

And after a dramatic start to the NBA postseason, Clark sounds like she may already be backing away from her original championship prediction.<\/p>\n

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In a Q&A interview with Athlon Sports\u2019 Kyle Wood<\/a>, Clark talked about the NBA playoffs, the teams she has been watching most closely, and why one playoff upset may have changed her thinking entirely.<\/p>\n

\"IndianaIndiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) tries to drive past New York Liberty<\/a> forward Alex Fowler (12) during the first half of a preseason game at Barclays Center.John Jones-Imagn ImagesCaitlin Clark Admits Timberwolves<\/a> Changed Her Thinking<\/p>\n

Clark revealed that she initially believed the San Antonio Spurs<\/a> would win the NBA title this season.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor this year? Oh, boy. Well, you know, I thought the Spurs were gonna win it all,\u201d Clark said. \u201cThat was my pick. That\u2019s what I\u2019ve been telling everybody, but I don\u2019t know, I might be rethinking after the Timberwolves stole Game 1.\u201d<\/p>\n

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That comment immediately stood out, considering how much momentum the Minnesota Timberwolves<\/a> have built during the playoffs. Minnesota\u2019s Game 1 win changed the tone of that Western Conference series, and Clark clearly took notice.<\/p>\n

She also acknowledged that the Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a> remain the popular choice across the league.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, OKC would be the easy pick. I\u2019m sure everybody\u2019s saying that,\u201d Clark added.<\/p>\n

Still, Clark made it clear she believes the eventual NBA champion will come out of the Western Conference.<\/p>\n

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Clark Still Locked into Every NBA Playoff Game<\/p>\n

Even while gearing up for another highly anticipated Fever season, Clark said she has remained fully invested in the NBA playoffs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think whoever comes out of the West will win it all,\u201d Clark said. \u201cSo, I\u2019m hoping for a Spurs-OKC Western Conference finals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clark also mentioned the New York Knicks<\/a> as a possible Eastern Conference representative while admitting she was disappointed to see the Boston Celtics<\/a> eliminated.<\/p>\n

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Part of that disappointment came from her connection to former Iowa teammate Luka<\/a> Garza.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a former Hawkeye on the team, who was one of my good friends,\u201d Clark said.<\/p>\n

But Clark emphasized how much she simply enjoys this time of year for basketball fans.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut more than anything, I just hope they\u2019re good series. That\u2019s what makes it so fun. And this is one of the best times of the year. There\u2019s an NBA playoff game on every single night. So, I\u2019m always tuned in and watching.\u201d<\/p>\n

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That basketball obsession became part of Clark\u2019s identity long before she entered the WNBA. It is also one reason Fever fans continue to connect with her. Even as one of the biggest stars in women\u2019s basketball, Clark still sounds like someone enjoying the sport the same way fans do every spring.<\/p>\n

With Indiana\u2019s regular-season opener against the Dallas Wings<\/a> on Saturday, Clark appears healthy and fully engaged heading into what she hopes is a massive third WNBA season. But as the NBA playoffs continue to play out, one thing is already clear: her championship prediction might not be as settled as it once was.<\/p>\n

Related: WNBA GMs: Caitlin Clark Is Not the Best Point Guard<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: Caitlin Clark’s Comment Hints at Lexie Hull’s Wedding<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports<\/a> on May 6, 2026, where it first appeared in the WNBA<\/a> section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There are very few athletes in the NBA or WNBA right now who command attention quite like Caitlin…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":727393,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[7,75,455,6074,459,3755,508,6,11,191,3801,179,474,308],"class_list":["post-727392","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-basketball","tag-boston-celtics","tag-caitlin-clark","tag-dallas-wings","tag-indiana-fever","tag-iowa-hawkeyes","tag-luka","tag-nba","tag-nba-playoffs","tag-new-york-knicks","tag-new-york-liberty","tag-oklahoma-city-thunder","tag-san-antonio-spurs","tag-timberwolves"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116529094617436961","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/727392","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=727392"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/727392\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/727393"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=727392"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=727392"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=727392"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}