Things continue to go from bad to worse for the Indiana Fever. On one hand, fans were already reeling from the DeWanna Bonner breakup, when the team confirmed Caitlin Clark with not be playing vs The Los Angeles Sparks owing to a groin injury. And if that isn’t already worse, what happened on the court only confirmed luck isn’t in the Fever’s favor for the time being.

On June 26 at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse, the Sparks showed early that they had come to dominate. They jumped to an 8-0 lead early, which Fever fought back to make it a one-point deficit at the end of the first quarter, thanks to Natasha Howard’s six points. Going into the halftime break, Stephanie White’s team was successful in pushing their lead to 34-30 on the back of 11 first-half steals by Indiana.

By the time the third quarter concluded, the Fever were leading 58-50 after Kelsey Mitchell’s 11 points, including three three-pointers. LA, however, was not done. With a staggering 35-point fourth-quarter run, the Sparks’ first lead came with 4:13 remaining. The road was seemingly easy from there for Lynne Roberts’ girls as they outscored the opponents 35-17 in the last quarter. However, this also pointed out a clear pattern. One that reeks of Fever’s devastation in the fourth quarter.

Notably, the team has lost in a similar fashion multiple times this season. In a clash vs the Las Vegas Aces on June 22, with 4:18 left, the Aces were leading by just two points, which turned into a seven-point lead just a minute later. What’s more? Courtesy of missed shots, Indiana lost the game, outscored 31-20 in the fourth quarter. The Valkyries did the same damage on June 19 winning the fourth 33-18. So, naturally, Sophie Cunningham didn’t hold back after looking at the need of the hour in the post-game press conference. “You’re right, we’ve had double-digit leads going into the 4th, then we just let it slip. So for us, we got to be better,” she said.

But Cunningham did have some good news for everyone, as she tried to find the silver lining. “I think so far this season, we’ve had a lot of distractions, you can call it. Some injuries… But I think that’s really good for us. Let’s go through the adversity early, let’s learn from it,” Cunningham said. “The good news is we’re not gonna peak too early, so I mean that’s a positive.”

As for head coach Stephanie White, she didn’t mince her words. “I mean, I think that we haven’t shown a killer instinct yet. We have had a tendency to relax in those moments, instead of… going for the kill…It’s just moments of mental lapses or mental relaxation that you can’t have in this league.” Unfortunately, besides the late-game woes, the Fever’s season has been defined more by injuries and drama than on-court action. Caitlin Clark has already missed six games due to two separate injuries, while Sophie Cunningham has been sidelined for four with an ankle issue. And how can we forget the on-court drama?

The altercations with Angel Reese, Marina Mabrey, and Jacy Sheldon have made a fair few rounds on the internet! And it doesn’t even stop there. The entire DeWanna Bonner saga is too fresh to be forgotten too soon.

But like Cunningham, it’s always better to face adversity early. It at least gives you time to regroup, fix the cracks, and gear up for the business end of the season. But are these problems fixable? Only time will tell. One thing that could definitely ease some of the Fever’s problems? A fully fit Caitlin Clark. But when will she come back? Well, the coach has given an update of sorts.

When will CC come back to lead Sophie Cunningham & Co.?

Earlier this season, Caitlin Clark had already missed five games due to a left quadriceps strain. While Clark eventually returned and played a big role in wins over the Liberty and the Sun, she’s out again.

“It’s very much a day-to-day thing, how she responds to treatment. I stay in my lane and let our strength and conditioning staff… do what they do best..They took her down yesterday for the MRI, I’m not exactly sure (when she reported the injury). I didn’t hear about until I heard about it from the training staff last night,” White informed.

With no clear indications given on when Clark can come back, it becomes impossible to predict what her injury situation is right now. Even with Clark’s recent shooting struggles, it won’t be wrong to say that the Fever will always be more likely to win than lose with her in the lineup. What do you think?