Caitlin Clark injury update: When will Fever star return? 'We're gonna play the long game'

Indianapolis Star

3 hours ago

INDIANAPOLIS – Caitlin Clark will not play in Tuesday's game at Atlanta, Fever coach Stephanie White said on Monday.
Clark's status for the game, which come just over two weeks after she suffered a quad strain, was previously up in the air. Clark didn't rule out playing in the game in her availability on June 3, but said she would need to be re-evaluated and left it up to the Fever's medical staff to make the final decision.
Now, that question has been answered.
"Not for tomorrow, no," White said Monday when asked if Clark would be available on Tuesday.
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Clark suffered a quad strain sometime during the Fever's game against the New York Liberty on May 24, though she couldn't pinpoint the specific play it happened. She reported some pain after the game and got an MRI, which showed a strain in her left quad.
'Obviously, adrenaline covers up a lot of stuff when you're in the heat of battle,' Clark said during her media availability on June 3. 'And after the game, I had some pain, and then we got an MRI, and that kind of gave me the result that I didn't want to see. But, you know, those types of things don't lie.'
Clark's original timeline was that she would be out for two weeks before she would be re-evaluated, setting her re-evaluation date at June 8. She was evaluated this weekend and allowed to begin some aspects of practice again, White said, but not necessarily cleared for basketball activities at the highest level.
"I don't know if cleared is the right word, I mean, she's ready to start ramping back up," White said. "But it's completely different when you're just doing 1-on-1 workouts, and when you're out there in 5-on-5, getting up and down the floor, moving laterally. So she's been allowed to do some practicing, not everything. And we're gonna be smart, and we're gonna be cautious, and we're gonna play the long game."
Clark participated in the portion of practice open to media Monday afternoon, which were shooting drills from midrange and 3-point range. They went around the arc as a team, making shots from each corner, each wing and the top of the key.
Clark didn't seem limited in that portion of practice, running for rebounds and shooting as normal. But shooting drills are much different than actual practice — both in the amount of contact and the intricacies of it.
"It's one thing to do some shooting drills," White said. "It's another thing to get out there on the floor, get back into movement patterns, rhythm, timing, and so that's what part of, you know, picking and choosing things that they can be in in practice, so that we can see their progression."
White did not provide a specific timeline for Clark's return to the court. The Fever play at Atlanta on Tuesday, then return to Indianapolis and a have a few days off before playing the New York Liberty on Saturday.
No, the Fever star will miss her fifth straight game as she recovers from a quad injury. Coach Stephanie White confirmed Monday that Clark would not play on Tuesday.