You know things are bad when there is a third consecutive muscle injury. That’s the situation for Caitlin Clark, she was niggle in the preseason, then it turned to a left quadriceps strain. Her return was short-lived as she injured her left groin. She had to go through the recovery process once again, and after her return, she injured her right groin. For Clark, the effects have been accentuated as she said, “It’s been so challenging because I’ve never been through this before.”

Ever since, she has been taking things slow. For now, her injury has been kept on the side while Fever tries to figure things out without her. “There is no timetable available for Clark’s return, and no additional details will be provided at this time.” The team has had her services for just 13 games because of these piling injuries.

However, there is a positive update regarding her progress. Holly Rowe said on the broadcast, “Stephanie White gave us a small update on Caitlin, she has started full court, full speed running for the last 4-5 days. still no basketball activities.” You just know Clark is itching to get back to full practice but her longterm future takes priority.

“It’s such, like, a weird injury,” Cunningham said Thursday on the “Show Me Something” podcast. “She’s not in pain all the time. But when you do hurt it you’re out for another…So I think they’re trying to be like extra cautious so she doesn’t kind of have those little setbacks.” 

Being in the unknown is the worst. While the medical reports may show you that things are not yet back to normal, Clark feels that way from time to time. That would only encourage her mind to force itself back too soon, again. Like Stephanie White said before the game, “We’re really diligent about each step that we take, and that we don’t have setbacks and that we’re patient with it. I know she wants to be out on the floor, and we want her out on the floor, but making sure that she’s ready is the most important thing.” When it comes to such a sensitive matter, caution arrives before anything.

The way the current winds are blowing, the Fever are on their way to qualify for the playoffs even without Clark. During Clark’s latest absence, the Fever have gone 5-2 with wins against the Phoenix Mercury and the Las Vegas Aces. Stephanie White is adjusting to life without Clark and letting her work on her injuries. When it comes to a proper recovery, Clark is pulling out all the stops as she revealed to resorting to innovative techniques like red-light therapy, dry needling, and hyperbaric oxygen chambers. When she comes back, she is ensuring to be completely fit, and Clark will only add her flair to this well-oiled system.

Clark’s Return Could Result In This Fever Squad Peaking

There has been talk of this Indiana Fever side being better without Caitlin Clark.  “She good, but she not that good,” Former Atlanta Hawks Point Guard Jeff Teague. When his brother Marquis said that the Fever are actually a better team without Clark, Teague responded, “Cuz, they ain’t shootin’ no wild a– threes from halfcourt.” I mean, she did lead the league in assists with 337 in her rookie year while also shooting the most threes. Her vision is unmatched, so is her outside shooting.

Aari McDonald has become comfortable on this Fever side, averaging 9.8 points and 4.7 assists since her addition. Her best basketball is yet to come as she has shown flashes of even more potential in the recent games. She went off for a career-high 27 points against the Mercury, and against the Storm, the team looked pretty weary without her on the court. She has been a blessing that came from nowhere for the Fever.

Sophie Cunningham has become what they imagined her to be when they signed her. Her outside shooting has been impeccable in the past few games, and she stepped up in their recent game against the Storm. She scored 17 points,2 assists, and 5 rebounds while going 4-5 from the three-point line. She stepped up when Kelsey Mitchell was having a rare bad day. Apart from this game, Mitchell has taken up the brunt of the scoring. Natasha Howard is doing Natasha Howard things along with Aliyah Boston, compensating for their lack of physicality and dominating the paint.

With Clark back, she will get a balanced attack at the top of their game handed to her. She no longer would have to do everything herself. Clark can focus on what she does best while increasing the level of her teammates further. She could be their X Factor that leads to breaking through top teams like the New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx. They lost against the Liberty twice without their star guard, while her 32-point display against them earlier in the season remains etched in everyone’s minds. With her back, this team might just become a legitimate contender if everyone performs at their current level.