The Indiana Fever are navigating through the absence of their star guard, Caitlin Clark, who has been out since mid-July due to a groin injury. Despite that, with the help of stars like Sophie Cunningham and Aliyah Boston, the Fever are ranked fifth in the WNBA standings with a record of 17-14. This means the Fever have done relatively well in Clark’s absence, but they will need their star guard to return to the court sooner if they want to make a run for the championship.
After their recent blowout loss (96-50) against the Phoenix Mercury on Thursday, Cunningham sounded optimistic about the Fever’s future. She said (0:18):
“Yeah, I’m good. You know, I think we faced some adversity with some injuries this game. But you know what, we’re used to that. We’ve had that since the beginning of the year. This is just another hump that we’re going to get over and we’re going to be okay.”
Delving further into the injury to Clark, Cunningham added:
“For sure. I mean, it sucks, right? You don’t—you don’t ever want to see anyone be injured on any team. I feel like there’s been a lot of injuries this year in the W. Harsh ones, I think. And you know, it’s just another one, and Clark is still the heartbeat of our team. She’s going to be okay. Our team’s going to be okay, and again, it’s just another hurdle that we’re going to have to get over.”
In Thursday’s loss, Cunningham, who started in place of Clark, led the team with 18 points along with two rebounds, and as many assists.
Latest on Caitlin Clark’s injury and when she will possibly return
Caitlin Clark injured her groin on July 15 during the Fever’s win over the Connecticut Sun. This led her to miss the All-Star game and nine straight games for the Fever. According to the Indiana Fever’s medical evaluation, no additional injuries or damage were discovered to Clark. However, head coach Stephanie White has taken a cautious and step-by-step approach to her return.
“It’s day-to-day right now,” White said on Thursday. “We’re really just putting no timetable on it. Going through the rehab process, and then we want to reintegrate her from a strength and conditioning standpoint and then get her back to basketball activities.”
Amid this, good news has come along from ESPN’s Holly Rowe, who said Clark has begun full-court running for the past 4-5 days. However, she hasn’t resumed full basketball activities yet.
Caitlin Clark has played 13 games this season, averaging 16.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 8.8 assists while shooting 36.7%, including 27.9% from beyond the arc.
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