The Indiana Fever have had a rough go of things without superstar guard Caitlin Clark.
The team announced on May 26 that Clark would miss at least two weeks with a left quadriceps strain, which she admitted to reporters on Thursday she injured in Indiana’s 90-88 loss to the reigning WNBA champion New York Liberty two days prior.
“Definitely early in the game, but I couldn’t tell you the exact play [it happened] on,” Clark stated. “It could’ve occurred over the course of the game, too. Obviously, adrenaline covers up a lot of stuff when you’re in the heat of battle, and after the game, I had some pain, got an MRI, and gave me the result I didn’t want to see.”
The Fever have lost two of the three games Clark has missed so far, and both were ugly.
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Clark’s initial two-week injury timeline matches up with what she told reporters after shootaround on Thursday about when she’s planning to return to the lineup, which could put her back on the court for Tuesday’s matchup against the Atlanta Dream.
“I think we’re trying not to put an exact date out there because it is kind of a day-by-day thing and seeing how I feel,” Clark noted. “With this type of injury, you don’t know if I’ll feel different than the day before and we’ll see. It could be a possibility [to play against Atlanta] but I could also not be able to play in that game too.”
“I’ll be reevaluated this weekend, so I’ll miss this weekend’s game (against Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky on Saturday) but after that, it’s day-by-day and see how I feel. … I’m not going to rush it to get back, it’s just not worth it.”
The team’s 83-77 loss to the Washington Mystics was just their second win of the year, snapping a three-game skid. Indiana’s 85-83 loss to the Connecticut Sun two days later is the team’s only victory this season.
That May 28 game against the Mystics was the first game Clark had missed since her sophomore year at Dowling Catholic High School.
Since then, she played in—and started—139 straight games during her four seasons at Iowa, plus 44 straight games during her rookie season through the early part of this year.
If Clark can’t suit up for the Dream game, that likely puts her on track to return at home in Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 14 against the Liberty — the same team she suffered her first major injury against.