Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark is enlisting Stephen Curry’s trainer, Brandon Payne, to refine her game. This partnership follows a 2025 campaign where injuries limited her to 13 games.

Clark told reporters Thursday that working with the veteran coach provides confidence as she seeks creative ways to improve.

Caitlin Clark and Stephen Curry have been compared ever since Clark's college days at the University of Iowa. And now, Clark might be one step closer to becoming the WNBA’s version of Curry.

Clark told reporters Thursday that working with the veteran coach provides confidence as she seeks creative ways to improve.

“Obviously I knew he worked with Steph and I love Steph's game," Caitlin Clark said. “I'm just looking for some creative ways to make myself better and challenge myself. Obviously coming off of injury it's really difficult to get those type of reps and things like that.”

For Clark, working with Brandon Payne made plenty of sense. The veteran trainer recently helped Stephen Curry return to 5-on-5 scrimmages in April 2026 before rejoining the Golden State Warriors for the end of the season.

And that's why she added, “Obviously, what he's been able to do with Steph, that gives you a lot of confidence in things that he can maybe bring to me."

Also, the admiration goes both ways. Even before they started working together, Payne had already spoken highly of Clark’s shooting ability back in 2024.

"Her compact shooting is up and out with a quick release. She has incredible distance," Payne told ESPN's Paul Biancardi.

"One reason is, she has tight, repeatable mechanics and shoots through her core and wrist."

The parallels between Clark and Curry are evident in their shared offensive style. Both are known for their deep shooting range and ability to make shots from well beyond the three-point line.

Although Clark was limited to just 13 games during the 2025 season because of groin and quadriceps injuries, she has started 2026 in impressive form. She is averaging 23.8 points and nine assists per game in the 2026 season so far.

However, the gravity numbers suggest there is still room for growth for someone like Clark. Clark is not quite at Curry's level yet, especially when playing off the ball.

The One Area Where Caitlin Clark Still Trails Stephen Curry

Clark has a gravity rating of 3.9. And that score ranked her out of the top 10 list, placing her 19th in the WNBA this season.

At first glance, that may seem surprising given her deep shooting range, constant movement on offense, and elite playmaking ability.

However, analyst Rachel A. DeMita explained why the numbers make sense, and naturally, the comparison to Stephen Curry came up.

“Her [CC's] on-ball gravity is some of the highest in all of these rankings,” DeMita said. "But when you look at her interior off-ball gravity, that’s when it starts getting lower."

The 24-year-old certainly attracts defensive attention. But she does not impact defenses away from the ball the same way Stephen Curry does.

Stephen Curry remains a constant threat even when he doesn't have the ball. Caitlin Clark, meanwhile, relies more on pick-and-roll actions to draw defenders.

That helps explain why her overall gravity ranking is lower, despite posting one of the WNBA's highest perimeter on-ball gravity totals at 5.3.

That said, there is plenty of room for growth. As the Indiana Fever continue to use Clark more off the ball, those skills should improve. And with Brandon Payne now in her corner, she has the right mentor to help speed up that process.

Do you think working with Payne can help Clark develop the off-ball movement that has made Stephen Curry so dangerous?

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Written by

Sauramita Debbarma

Edited by

Koushik Biswas