Video: WNBA's Caitlin Clark Talks Fever Preseason Debut vs. Arike Ogunbowale, Wings

Caitlin Clark is gearing up to make her Indiana Fever preseason debut against Arike Ogunbowale and the Dallas Wings on Friday.

The former Iowa star spoke to reporters ahead of the debut and said she's eager to get some reps against a different team after competing against her own squad in practice.

"Obviously, there's so much you can do in practice, but you become very familiar with what other teams are doing," Clark said. "They'll do some stuff that we don't do. Coming into this game, you can scout and know some things that they're going to do, but they're going to do some new stuff, they're going to do some different stuff."

She will match up with Wings rookie Jacey Sheldon, who she competed against in college when Sheldon was at Ohio State. Clark spoke highly of Sheldon and said she's looking forward to facing her again.

"Jacey was always one of the best players in the Big [Ten] as long as I was there," Clark said. "Somebody that can really score the ball at all three levels. Pesky defender, got a lot of steals... More than anything I'm just happy for her. It'll be fun and it'll be good for the Big Ten too."

Making a WNBA debut comes with a lot of pressure, but Clark wants to make sure she stays true to herself as she begins her journey.

"The biggest thing I tell myself is come out here and be me," Clark said. "I want to come and step on this court and don't feel like I have to be anybody else... I think just being aggressive. Be a basketball player, that's what coach has been saying."

Clark faced a tremendous amount of pressure after a storied collegiate career. In four years at Iowa, she became the NCAA's all-time leading scorer, breaking countless other records along the way and leading the Hawkeyes to back-to-back national championship appearances. In her senior year, she put up a career-high 31.6 points per game.

Clark's success at the next level seems inevitable, but how quickly she will find success is the question.

The 2024 No. 1 overall pick joins last season's first pick and 2023 Rookie of the Year Aliyah Boston on the Fever, and the two are looking to help turn things around in Indiana. The Fever have missed the playoffs in each of the last seven seasons.

Clark and Boston seem capable of putting together a turnaround season, and that quest begins on Friday with the start of preseason play. The Fever will face the Wings at 8 p.m. on Friday and the regular season will begin in just over two weeks on May 14.