When NaLyssa Smith was in second grade, she faced her first basketball challenge. A boy on the playground dared her to play one-on-one. The problem? She was wearing a dress. So what did she do? She grabbed scissors, cut her dress into makeshift shorts and a T-shirt. By the end, she had completely outscored and outplayed him. “She killed him — outscored him, outplayed him,” her mom, Nikki Smith, recalled with a laugh. That moment was the essence of who Smith is. Test her. Doubt her. Challenge her. She’ll find a way, every single time.

And maybe that’s the exact kind of challenge Caitlin Clark’s Indiana didn’t realize they’d be facing in a do-or-die playoff game when they decided to trade her.

A standout at Baylor, NaLyssa Smith entered the WNBA as the Indiana Fever’s second overall pick

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