After eight months of injury-related absence, Caitlin Clark was almost triumphant when she declared how “nice” it feels to be “finally back at 100%”. Immediately after, Clark delivered a masterclass, too, as if to prove her point. At the 2026 FIBA World Cup qualifiers, she averaged 11.6 points and a tournament-leading 6.4 assists over five games for Team USA, capping it off by winning MVP. However, trouble still lurks in the shadows for her, and by extension, the Indiana Fever.

While the team had Natasha Howard to take responsibility in Clark’s absence last season, a Minnesota Lynx move doesn’t warrant the same security for the Fever anymore. Meaning? Stephanie White is being more cautious than ever, taking a calculated approach with their star guard’s health moving forward.

“I think it’s new for everybody. I think we’ve got to be smart,” coach White said in a recent conversation on Query & Company. “She has worked her butt off this whole offseason to prepare herself. We have an added advantage in that she played games in March, right, with USA Basketball. And so she has game exposure, she has game pace, she has game rhythm, she has game timing, and so we have an advantage.”

Top Stories

Golf

’Leave Phones off My Face”: Jordan Spieth Finds Himself in Awkward Spot Yet Again at $20M PGA Tour Event

7 hrs ago

tennis

Maria Sharapova Stands Up Against Patriarchy With Her Recent Move

8 hrs ago

NASCAR

Michael Jordan Pulls Off the Unthinkable With $3.8B Move Months After Losing Kurt Busch’s Iconic Partner

1 day ago

Golf

Scottie Scheffler Had an All-Time Response After Making the TIME’s 100 Most Influential List for 2026

16 hrs ago

Golf

LIV Golf Dragged into New Lawsuit Amid Rumors About Being a Shut Shop

22 hrs ago

Golf

Augusta National Told to Revise Strict Rule Following CBS’s Disastrous Masters Coverage

2 days ago

But that elite performance on the court this March didn’t come without its own struggles.

It’s been all about recovery for the 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year. Clark turned to innovative treatments like red-light therapy, dry needling, and hyperbaric oxygen chambers in her push to get back to full strength. Aside from the physical battle, Clark also had to make sure the mental side of things didn’t take a toll.

The 24-year-old revealed that she regularly meets with a sports psychologist. “We have a sports psychologist on our staff who I sometimes meet with multiple times a week, to not only talk about basketball but other things in life, and that’s something that’s been important to me over the course of my career,” she said. “I don’t just talk about things that stress me out, but also the joys in my life, and that’s always a good reminder and reset for me.”

All of that has finally led to Caitlin Clark being back on the court, with match rhythm behind her and ready to perform the way she did in her rookie season. Still, despite that boost, the Indiana Fever are focused on building her up carefully rather than rushing her into a full workload.

“But we also want to be smart. She doesn’t need every rep in practice. We want to continue to ramp her up. It’s a long season, 44 games, and we play a heavy cadence of games in a week. And so we want to be smart in camp, and make sure we – I don’t want to say ease her into it, because she’s ready for camp – but we want to make sure that we manage the reps, and what kinds of reps she’s getting, just to build her up so that she’s ready to go, and we don’t have any kind of questions about that,” the coach further added.

Truth be told, that might be the most best way to go forward especially with the seriousness of Clark’s injuries last season.

Notably, after 139 games at Iowa and 44 more with the Fever, Caitlin Clark suffered the first injury setback of her career. It began with left quadriceps tightness during training camp, which soon turned into a more serious quad strain in May, followed by a left groin injury on June 26. But after returning just four games later, Clark’s luck ran out again on July 15. In the dying seconds against the Connecticut Sun, while attempting a backdoor pass to Kelsey Mitchell, she went down clutching her groin and left the court in tears.

At first, it didn’t seem too serious, with the Indiana Fever listing Caitlin Clark as day-to-day. But Dr. Jesse Morse had already warned that things could get complicated. “The tricky part about groin strains is they are a very slow healing tissue, easy to reinjure, and constantly required for anything involving the legs. Sometimes even shutting them down for a couple weeks isn’t enough. She either needs strong dose of stem cells or surgery”.

That is exactly what happened.

While trying to recover from the groin injury, Caitlin Clark hit another roadblock on August 7, when it was revealed she had suffered a bone bruise in her ankle. At the time, there was still hope she would return. But the final blow came when Clark herself announced that she wouldn’t be coming back for the rest of the season.

“I had hoped to share a better update, but I will not be returning to play this season,” she said in her statement, after trying everything possible to make a comeback.

That said, aside from Caitlin Clark, the Indiana Fever were dealing with four more season-ending injuries heading into the playoffs last year. They were without Sophie Cunningham, Sydney Colson, Aari McDonald, and Chloe Bibby. That’s exactly why taking a cautious approach this time around feels like the right way forward.

So it’s clear that Stephanie White has a plan that reflects confidence in her player, but with caution. Because while Clark has already shown she’s close to game-ready with her recent stint, the Indiana Fever are aiming for a full season.

But her return isn’t the only thing fans are looking forward to.

Caitlin Clark and Raven Johnson Could Be the Most Exciting Duo of the 2026 WNBA Season

Clark, being one of the most popular stars of the sports, for sure has everyone excited for her return. But after the Indiana Fever’s WNBA draft pick, fans have another storyline to look forward to. Because what’s better than watching rivals turn into teammates?

The Fever used their No. 10 pick to draft Raven Johnson to their team just a few days ago. And ever since, fans have come to know that all they can think about is the rivalry between them.

Do you remember the 2023 Final Four? Caitlin Clark waved off Raven Johnson on the perimeter, daring her to shoot—a moment that went viral almost instantly. But for Johnson, the aftermath was far from easy, as she later admitted the online abuse nearly drove her away from basketball.

So naturally, many were quick to question whether these two players would even be compatible on the same team.

But that’s exactly what makes this team-up in Indiana so fascinating. Because, instead of being defined by their past, both of them are stepping into a shared space with a common goal – winning the championship.

Johnson is widely known for performing the little things right. She brings a skill set that will complement Caitlin Clark because where Clark thrives as an offensive engine, Johnson operates as a stabilizer.

And that distinction is exactly why the Fever got her. Because while some fans questioned the need for another guard, the coaching staff clearly sees something different.

So the narrative of these two guards having something against each other is just louder online and doesn’t represent the ground reality. Take it from Aliyah Boston, because even she claimed, “fans always have more beef than the players actually do.”

So that answers any questions you may have about Raven Johnson and Caitlin Clark having a problem with each other.