After Thursday's game where veteran WNBA star Breanna Stewart racked up 31 points in a lopsided win over the Fever, she had some words of wisdom about Indiana rookie Caitlin Clark. In summary, those words were "give her some time."

"Obviously, she's a very talented player and she's your No. 1 pick and No. 1 picks continue to grow and develop into this league and really make their mark," said Stewart. "For her to be able to handle everything that she's handling on and off the court and still play and be locked in with her team, it's great to see."

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Stewart went on to say Clark reminds her of her rookie season with the Seattle Storm in 2016. Stewart was the No. 1 overall pick in the draft after a stellar college career with Connecticut where she broke records and was called the greatest women's college basketball player to ever take the court.

"I know coming to the WNBA, there's an adjustment just from the level of play and playing against the best every single night," Stewart said. "But she has a good group around her to continue to build and learn and obviously a young core, but (she) reminds me a little bit of when I was in Seattle."

New York's Sabrina Ionescu, picked No. 1 by the Liberty in 2020 after a standout career at Oregon, said she was excited to go up against Clark. And she cautioned people to remember she is just two games into her professional career.

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"You always are going to have to fight adversity, and I think that's part of everyone's journey is being able to kind of weather that storm and figure out what makes you you," Ionescu said. "And she's so young, she's going be able to learn and grow. Times like this are kind of when you figure out what you're really made of and how you can continue to improve as a teammate, as a basketball player, as a person.

"I'm not the least bit worried about what she's going to be able to accomplish in the league."

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart gives Caitlin Clark advice on early struggles