Only 12 games remain before the playoffs, and the Indiana Fever — predicted at the beginning of the season as championship contenders — are standing at No. 5 with a .563 winning percentage. Well, that’s not too bad, especially when your offensive core, a.k.a. Caitlin Clark, is out for the third time due to injury. But while the drive to this point has been impressive, the road ahead isn’t going to be easy. Without a true point guard, the Fever are in a dire situation. If that called for fast-tracking the 23-year-old’s return, a Fever insider is giving a big no.

We are hours away from August 12th, the date ESPN predicted Caitlin Clark would make her return to the court. But as per Fever beat reporter, Scott Agness’ update, that is still a far possibility. “Now, Caitlin Clark, yes, she was at practice, but still not progressing to just practicing just yet,” he revealed in his Fever practice recap. If anything, Agness adds that Clark should be selfish, prioritizing her recovery above all else.

“She needs to be selfish, and I think is, in a good way,” he added.“That’s a positive for her, to take all the time she needs to feel comfortable with her body as well as with those injuries.”

And to be honest, it’s not too much of an ask. The Fever sensation was allowed little to no practice time ahead of her return previously, resulting in no wins for the Fever and a cold shooting slump for her. And in the final minute of the Fever’s 85–77 win over the Connecticut Sun on July 15, she ended up re-aggravating her injury. Since then, she has been ruled out, missing yet another highly anticipated matchup against rookie standout Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings.

Stephanie White also revealed that while Clark has progressed to full-court running, she is “not into practice shape” yet. “No return to practice — she’s been able to get a little bit more of her full-court running with all of her body weight… It’s really building up from doing minimal to building some endurance to do longer periods of time. She’s been able to do a little more on the court in terms of how she moves, but not into practice shape,” she shared.

Well, the former Iowa Hawkeyes standout has already missed 19 of the Fever’s 32 games this season due to three different muscle injuries. This season has been especially trying for Clark. Speaking to Glamour over All-Star weekend, she admitted, “This is the first time I haven’t felt like a young body that can run around and sprint every day and just continue to do that,” describing the mental and physical toll of being sidelined for so long. Still, the Fever keep adapting.

Even without their star guard, Indiana has stayed competitive, helped by a lighter schedule and strong play from Aliyah Boston, Kelsey Mitchell, and Sophie Cunningham. They’ve gone 11–9 without her, including winning six of their last eight games. However, the injury list has grown longer, with guards Sydney Colson and Aari McDonald both suffering season-ending injuries last week.

To keep moving until CC is back in shape, they’ve signed Odyssey Sims to a hardship contract. It made sense, since the 11-year WNBA veteran and former All-Star brings valuable experience to a backcourt that has been severely depleted. But does her arrival make things better?

Adding Odyssey Sims would only offer the Fever temporary relief

Sims, 33 years old, was the No. 2 overall pick by the then–Tulsa Shock during the 2014 draft, and ever since, she’s averaged 11.2 points, 3.8 assists, and 2.5 rebounds in 304 games. This season, in 2025, she was with the LA Sparks, averaging 9.8 points and 3.5 assists in 12 games (11 starts) before being released in early July.

So, you know, having her in Indy is definitely one of the better decisions, but things aren’t looking good for the long term. Adding her is only a temporary solution for the squad, given that a hardship contract lasts 7 days and can only be renewed twice. Moreover, that’s only before the playoffs — as under any circumstances, Sims cannot play in the postseason.

And, while the Fever added her, the roster is still limited to just nine players, meaning they have another spot to fill with a player on a hardship contract until CC gets better and rejoins the lineup. But again, it’s all temporary since Clark’s presence is essential for the team at this crucial point in their push for a championship.

But, still, there’s no guarantee that when she returns, Clark will be 100% healthy. Well, Lisa Leslie, who suffered a similar injury in 2006, puts it better: “The hard part is that the groin is an area that you can’t just go, ‘Oh, it hurts right here.’ You feel it deep, you have to get a lot of deep treatment, whether it’s ice, and heat, and rest.… One move, one change of direction and, boom, you’re right back feeling that same type of pain. So it’s gonna have to be a tough injury that she’s gonna have to manage.”

But, the worst part? For Leslie, the pain still lingered years later when she played tennis. So you can imagine how it might be for Clark — and why the insider wants her to be selfish in a positive way!