Sure, I prefer Sporting Clays over Trap or Skeet too....but shooting Skeet made me a much better sporting clays competitor.
The repetition and discipline ...and fundamentals of shooting Skeet..../ with a coach ...and shooting it well enough to average about a 96 out of 100 ..consistently, was what gave me the confidence....and the ability to understand on the sporting course....when I missed a shot....I was able to correct between shots ...if I missed the 2nd pair of 4 pairs / or maybe I barely chipped a target ....then I was able to fundamentally evaluate what I did wrong / correct my mistake, in competition, so I could make a better shot on the 3rd and 4th pair.
So instead of going 3 or 4 for 8 on some stations.....I was able to get to 6 or 7 out of 8 ...or sometimes have the mental game...to go 8 for 8 ...
Shooting Trap ....never gave me that edge...
Not that you shouldn't shoot some Trap ....there are Trap targets on a sporting course too ...but the lack of repetition of shots on a Trap field ...slowed my development down a little I think. Where the repetition on a Skeet field ....finally made the concepts of Hold point, shooting a sustained lead - so I could adjust for wind, etc ..., insertion of the gun to track a target, the break point...and the follow thru ...because you have so many crossing targets, left and right, on a skeet field - finally make sense to me and improved my overall shooting ability.
Skeet made my live bird hunting ...a lot better too...and the fun of shooting a 20ga, and 28ga and .410 for skeet - as well as a 12ga....made it better too ( and gave me an excuse to buy more guns )...