Turnovers have been a double-edged sword for Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever. In literally Clark’s first game in an Indiana Fever shirt, she set the rookie record for most turnovers in a game with 10, and that trend continued. She averaged 5.7 per game and ended up leading the league in this unwanted statistic with 223. The point guard broke the record for most turnovers in a single season, going past Mercury’s Alyssa Thomas. Stephanie White has been pretty critical of the team being slippery this year.

When Clark’s shot just vanished from thin air and she was 1-17 from the 3-point line, Stephanie White said after their loss to Aces, “Caitlin’s shot is going to be just fine. The thing I’m worried about is our (16) turnovers for 28 points.” The turnover issues have been consistent throughout the season as they have conceded 15.1 points per game off turnovers, which is better than last year, but it is not the championship-contending metric. However, this reporter has recently pointed out that the team has turned the tables on the opponents in recent weeks using their hustle and intensity.

Logan Hackett said on the ‘Good Follow Podcast’, “In the past 10 games, they are leading the league with averaging just over 19 points off of turnovers. Like they’re incredibly disruptive, and it’s all starting to work out. I also think when you have such a unit that runs around pace and tempo with someone like Caitlin Clark, and you take her out of it, of course, it’s going to take a while to have to gel everyone together.”

To be exact, they have 19.1 points scored each game by forcing turnovers, scoring 191 in total, which is 17 more than the next best team in the same period. Aari McDonald and Natasha Howard have led the side in this stretch, getting 15 steals each, while Aliyah Boston is not far behind with 13. On the other end of the court, they are mending their own turnover woes too, conceding just 4 in their last game against the Sparks. While they are still conceding 16.0 on average in the previous 10 games, their Sparks matchup is a promising sign that this group is starting to gel together and completing their adjustment to life without Clark.

Like Sophie Cunningham said after their 5th consecutive win, “Just shows that we’re getting closer, we’re trusting each other — I think that’s the biggest part, is trusting and knowing that we can win those games even if they go on runs.” While they had the streak snapped in just the next game, they made it a close one when it seemed to be lost. It provided the team with more positives to take out and move on to the next one. With so much growth and improvement emerging without Caitlin Clark, a question comes to mind: Should Caitlin Clark even return this season?

Indiana Fever Could Postpone Caitlin Clark’s Return Until After This Season

We have heard on Caitlin Clark’s “long-term health” being a priority for the Indiana Fever staff from Stephanie White more times than we can count. The latest encouraging update regarding her injury came from ESPN reporter Holly Rowe, who reported, “Well, Stephanie White did give us a small update on Caitlin that she has started some full-court running, full-speed running the last four or five days. Still not doing full basketball activities, but there has been some progress made recently.” That was during Indiana’s win against Seattle, and not much has changed since.

Clark has dealt with multiple soft tissue injuries, which were all different. In the preseason, she had a left leg injury that forced her to miss the Mystics game. Then, a left quadriceps injury cost Clark five games in a stretch from May end to early June. The next time, it was a left groin injury that sidelined Clark for four regular-season games and the Commissioner’s Cup final against the Lynx, which they won even without her. Combining all, she has missed 18 games throughout with either injury, and with the team playing so well, they might consider ruling her out for the entire season, considering she is just a sophomore.

Sophie Cunningham mentioned that her injury is “weird” and at times she feels no pain, but it comes back after some time. Considering that, if the team is doing well enough without her, it could be more prudent to rest her throughout and then regroup next season. The team has shown the capability to go all the way even without her in the lineup. Even with the repetitive defensive issue, the team has largely been consistent on offense. The team risks disrupting the current flow of helping her back on the court when she returns. Clark is more than capable of making a difference, but even the most elite players need time and help coming back from injuries. 

However, there is a case of getting her back for as many games as possible. In thinking of the future, we forget that there is no guarantee this team will play basketball like this again. They may never get a chance of going for the title, and Clark might prove to be the extra punch this year. 

There are valid points on both ends of the argument, but the decision will be ultimately based on just how bad Clark’s injury is and what the actual long-term risks the team is taking in order to deprive her of that extra rest. With their turnover issues subsiding and turning on their opponents, as Ros Gold-Onwude said, “Even without Caitlin, you can’t count Fever out.”