Coming from a family of overachievers is one thing. But doing it under the spotlight of an entire nation while juggling multiple responsibilities? That’s another game altogether. Caitlin Clark has been mastering it ever since she set foot on the hardwood. With a Hall of Fame football coach for a grandfather and a father who excelled in both baseball and basketball at the collegiate level, she has been living up to every expectation that comes with that elite background. And she recently translated that experience of hustle into empathy and support for another woman walking the same demanding path.

Caitlin Clark gave a nod to Pacers’ shooting coach Jenny Boucek. Because Boucek isn’t just one of the four women currently coaching in the NBA, she is also a single mother and, just like the 2024 ROTY, she’s someone who grew up under the weight of generational excellence.

Her fraternal grandfather, Dr. Mark Boucek, was part of the world’s first baboon-to-baby heart transplant. Whereas her maternal grandfather, Dr. Robert Heath, founded Tulane University’s department of psychiatry and neurology. Her father? A doctor. Her mother? A psychologist. The pressure to follow these footsteps didn’t elude her. “That was the unspoken assumption, even for my own self,” Boucek told CBS in 2019.

However, unlike Clark, she chose an even harder path, to succeed in a completely unrelated field of sports. After all, it takes guts to start from scratch and give up a well established legacy. Which is what makes Caitlin Clark’s acknowledgment and appreciation even more heartwarming. In CC’s latest Instagram story, she reposted a collage from @nbaonespn. It was a heartwarming compilation of coach Jenny Boucek’s images, one even with her daughter Rylie.

It was dubbed as “The NBA Finals are a family affair for Coach Jenny Boueck (heart emoji).” And CC’s boyfriend, Connor McCaffrey (who worked as a team assistant with the Pacers last season), reposted it as well. “From parenting to game plans, Jenny Boucek does it all,” the caption read.

A mother of a 6-year-old at 51, Boueck is leading by example. While she tends to Rylie, who joins her on the entire journey, the coach has also managed to give the Pacers’ defense a face. A team that ranked 24th last season, rose to top the chart from January through to the end of the regular season. “Coming to Indy, and having a different system, I really had to adapt to a lot of things, and she’s been really helpful. She gives me great insights on what we want to do,” Pascal Siakam says.

For someone staring down the medical path once, this is a feat to embrace. Boueck is doing it unafraid, and she’s got plenty support to hold on– right from Rick Carlisle to McCaffrey. All that it takes to make someone feel seen is a little encouragement, and the Pacers’ coach has been on the other end, too.

Jenny Boucek spoke about Caitlin Clark

When Jenny Boucek talks about Caitlin Clark, she speaks with the kind of insight and deep respect that comes from her years of experience in both the WNBA and NBA. Moreover, as someone who has broken barriers herself, Boucek knows what it takes to pave new paths. So she perfectly recognizes when someone isn’t just playing the game but transforming it entirely. “Caitlin Clark’s impact is hard to explain,” Boucek said. “It’s something she was obviously predestined to be-to carry a mantle unlike any female athlete ever has.”

That’s how she views Clark. To Boucek, Caitlin was almost “predestined” to become the face of women’s sports. Clark, she added, carries that responsibility “with an extreme amount of poise and confidence.” She’s a machine who can reshape how people view the game, attract business investment, and elevate its cultural impact. What stands out though, isn’t just CC’s skill.

It’s the maturity and self-awareness she shows in handling the expectations that come with her success. She said “She understands this, which has endeared her to her peers. She knows she’s been given the mantle, and she carries a great responsibility.” In Boucek’s eyes, Clark is setting a new standard. But at the same time, she was careful to keep perspective. “She’s been a catalyst-but she’s not the only one.”

She pointed out that while Clark is a major driving force behind the current momentum in women’s basketball, there were others before her and are alongside her, it’s an ongoing process after all. one that began with the grit and sacrifice of past generations of women who played without the spotlight, and will continue through the rising stars who are all set to carry that momentum forward.