As the WNBA regular season is about to get started, Caitlin Clark, along with the Indiana Fever, is all geared up for the upcoming season and is eyeing a successful playoff run after last year’s first-round exit. Coach Stephanie White lauded her team by saying, “We’ve got edgy players, we’ve got competitive players…They want to win.” It is clear that the Fever are going to enter this year with a winning mindset, but Clark and company are facing early setbacks that might slow them down during the start of the season.

Clark was rested for the first preseason game against the Washington Mystics due to her injury, but played the remaining games in preparation for the regular season. However, another Fever guard sustained a seemingly serious injury in the last preseason game against the Atlanta Dream. Sophie Cunningham, who led the team to victory against the Mystics, landed awkwardly on her ankle against the Dream and did not play for the rest of the game. Coach White did sound positive after the game regarding Cunningham’s injury and said, “She keeps saying, ‘I’ll be fine.’ So I trust her.”

That optimism from Coach White is reassuring, but the reality’s a bit murkier. Cunningham’s ankle twist was serious enough that she was seen in a walking boot after the game, sparking concern among fans on X when images surfaced.

With the Fever’s roster already stretched thin due to the WNBA’s tight salary cap, losing a spark plug like Cunningham, who averaged 10.7 points per game in the preseason—could really sting. Her ability to hit timely threes and defend perimeter threats is something Indiana leans on, especially heading into a matchup with a tough Sky squad.

However, everything does not seem to be fine just yet.

Clark is set to face her on-court rival Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky in the season opener at home. This game’s got extra juice because of the Clark-Reese rivalry, which started back in their college days at Iowa and LSU.

While many believe it to be a must-win contest and expect Fever to be all hands on deck, Coach White is taking a more prudent approach. She has revealed Cunningham’s status to be day-to-day and noted, “It’s going to be a day-to-day thing just to see how she recovers. It’ll all depend on the training to tell me what she’s capable of doing every day.” It is still unclear if Cunningham will be playing in Saturday’s game. 

National Analyst Rachel DeMita revealed on her YouTube channel that Cunningham was not looking completely healthy and did not partake in the practice session in full capacity. She said, “Chloe Peterson tweeted and she said, ‘Sophie Cunningham didn’t participate in the open portion of practice today, but she is putting up shots post-practice.’ From this video, as you can see, she is not really going full speed; she is just kinda walking into her shots. It is still unclear if she will play in the Indiana Fever’s season opener against the Chicago Sky.” Cunningham played well in the preseason games and even started in the last preseason game against the Atlanta Dream. Her availability can be detrimental in deciding which way the game swings. 

Cunningham’s not just a role player, she’s a game-changer with her sharpshooting and scrappy defense. Without her, the Fever might have to lean harder on veterans like DeWanna Bonner or Natasha Howard, which could mess with their game plan. The Sky’s got a strong frontcourt with Reese and Kamilla Cardoso, so Cunningham’s ability to stretch the floor with her threes is huge. If she’s out, Clark might need to do even more, which is tough coming off her own injury.

Clark will have a tough matchup against Reese and the Sky. Fever managed to outshine the Sky last season, finishing with three wins against their one. Clark will try to replicate her last outing against Chicago when she managed to score 31 points along with 12 assists. The unclear status of Cunningham may prove to be a major concern as we wait and see how the Fever performs in their first game of their 2025 campaign.

WNBA Pundit Anticipates a Subdued Season for Caitlin Clark

Caitlin Clark is coming off a mild injury, which saw her sidelined for the first preseason game of 2025. Clark had one of the best rookie seasons in the history of the league, breaking a plethora of records along the way. She undoubtedly won the rookie of the year for her outstanding performance and put up wild numbers throughout the season. It is reasonable to say that it will be extremely difficult to have such a performance replicated soon by anyone, even Clark herself. However, there are newly added reasons as to why we might see a dip in Clark’s output this season. 

According to Kevin Pelton of ESPN, the addition of DeWanna Bonner and Natasha Howard to the Fever roster might hinder Clark’s playing minutes and lower her numbers compared to her rookie season. Pelton noted, “Because the Fever added two scoring threats in Bonner (15.0 PPG last season) and Howard (17.6 PPG) to their starting five, plus sixth woman Sophie Cunningham (8.4 PPG in 2024 but double figures the previous two seasons), there will be fewer plays to go around. Based on my projected rotation for Indiana, players’ usage rates will need to drop an average of 3% from what we’d otherwise expect.” 

Coach White is known to preserve players’ playtime to have them ready for a successful playoff push. We can be sure that even if Clark’s minutes are dropped, she will be putting up monster numbers as she is a generational player and will be more impactful on the court than off it. As Clark comes off a minor injury, let us see how she is utilized in the season opener with fellow guard Cunningham’s status undecided.