Caitlin Clark reluctantly compares her journey to LeBron James while expressing admiration for Lakers superstar's enduring legacy

Caitlin Clark's guest appearance on "My Next Guest Needs No Introduction" is turning out to be a gold mine of sound bites and anecdotes for hoops fan everywhere. At one point in this guest appearance, host David Letterman asked Clark a question of comparison: Is there an athlete whose journey of growth can be likened to hers?

Initially, the Indiana Fever guard refused to compare herself to other sports personalities. But, with some reluctance, she pointed out some similarities between her story and that of an all-time NBA great:

"I hate saying this, 'cause LeBron is, like, the greatest basketball player of all time," Clark told Letterman. "He had all these expectations coming out of high school to be the greatest player ever, and obviously, that's a lot to take on your shoulders."

The pressure of expectations is certainly something that Clark can relate to, as she likewise endured heavy scrutiny as her college career rose in prominence.

With every scoring, playmaking and 3-point shooting record she set, the former Iowa Hawkeyes star set the bar higher and higher for herself, as well as the rest of the competition.

Clark went on to give the LA Lakers superstar his props for handling all the expectations well:

"He's obviously lived up to it, and he's still one of the best players, if not the best player in the world. It's incredible what he's done for the game of basketball."

Reportedly, Clark got to interact with LBJ for the first time a few weeks ago. According to Pacers and Fever beat writer Scott Agness, Clark and James met up after the Lakers defeated the Pacers 120-119 on March 26 in Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

Caitlin Clark shares anecdote about trash talk exchange with WNBA legend

If anything, Clark has earned the distinction of going back and forth with all-time greats with the sport. In her appearance on Letterman's show, she shared one such anecdote involving a WNBA legend:

"Somebody that did talk trash was Diana Taurasi, but all in good fun. We were playing them at home and she fouled me, like pretty hard. I said to her, 'It's intentional. You didn't even go for the ball'... She came back at me and I'm like, 'Alright, do it again.' We just kept going back and forth at each other."

Clark added that, as one of Taurasi's teammates was taking a free throw moments later, she and the Phoenix Mercury star briefly exchanged pleasantries:

"She came up to me and she's like, 'I just love ya'...I was like, 'I love you, too,' and I went and got the inbound."

Certainly, Clark's moment with Taurasi is priceless, as the three-time WNBA champion called it a career after last season.