July 15 was the last time we saw Caitlin Clark in action. 11 games since the Fever’s offensive anchor left the court in tears after injuring her groin against the Sun, having only returned a week earlier from a five-game absence. That night, in front of the 19,000 fans at TD Garden, one was hardly prepared for the future Clark’s sophomore season held. It’s been a wait every day, and considering the stage the league is at, one worry might just block the light at the end of the tunnel this season.

The best bits of the updates we have received from Stephanie White so far remain at this: “She’s been able to do a little more on the court in terms of how she moves.” The immediate spoilsport? “But not into practice yet.” With only a month of regular-season basketball left, that’s not exactly music to the ears of Indiana fans.

To make matters worse, insider Scott Agness has all but confirmed that we might not see Clark again in the regular season. “Have patience. At least several more weeks,” the Fever beat reporter said while describing the nature of Caitlin Clark’s injury. Now that is definitely not promising. And to rub even more salt in the wound for the Fever, Rachel DeMita doubled down on this narrative on her YouTube channel.

In the latest episode of Courtside Club, she said, “If I’m their coach, she needs to practice for at minimum a week. At the minimum, she needs to be doing everything in practice for at least a week before you throw her back in the mix. Now, you’re going to throw her back in the mix when all of these teams are at peak condition. And we already know what happens when Caitlin Clark gets back out on the court — teams play defense on her differently, they play extra physical with her.”

Since her rookie season, Caitlin Clark has had a target on her back. While Coach White admitted to drawing different plays around her as Suns coach, Clark drew 4.5 personal fouls per game, more than any other rookie in the league. To add to that, 17.1% of all flagrant fouls were committed against her. The truth wasn’t elusive to the reigning ROTY. In the offseason, she spoke about adding extra muscle to handle the league’s physicality better.

We’ve seen how Clark rushing back from injuries hasn’t helped either her or the team. Without enough time to get back up to the game’s pace, she fell into a major shooting slump —averaging just 36.6% from the field this season and hitting only 27.9% from beyond the arc. On top of that, she has made only two three-pointers on the road all year. So rushing back is not an option.

Naturally, DeMita suggests that Clark should have at least a week after recovering to reintegrate with the team and avoid further injury. But does she have that time now? With Agness predicting she’ll be out for a few more weeks and the playoffs fast approaching, will she even get the chance to fully recover and work her way back into the side?

DeMita continued, saying, “That’s why I’m sort of leaning to the point of maybe Caitlin should be out for the rest of the season. Maybe this season is just done for her. Maybe it doesn’t make sense for her to come back into the mix if the Fever aren’t contenders. Are the Fever contenders at this point? I’m just not so sure. Do you risk another injury that can again compound and compound and turn into something else down the line?”

This is a valid sentiment. With an 18-15 record and the loss of Aari McDonald and Sydney Colson on the same day, the Fever no longer look like a team capable of making a deep playoff push this season. Their latest defeat to the Wings may have been a brutal reality check. Of course, coach White and her staff will keep fighting, but it’s hard to see the Fever being equipped for a serious postseason run –which is probably why Caitlin Clark’s season might already be over.

That said, ESPN had predicted Caitlin Clark’s return date, and it turned out to be way off the mark.

ESPN’s Caitlin Clark prediction goes wrong

Late last month, following ESPN’s Holly Rowe’s update from the Indiana Fever, there was an estimated date for her return– August 12th, to play against the Dallas Wings. But even as uncertainty continued to flow in from the Fever and coach White, the sports network did not change the prediction, leaving fans confused.

“No one really expected Clark to play against the Wings. But there was that update on the WNBA app that confused people a little bit. You can see it here. It has Caitlin Clark listed as a game-time decision,” reporter Robert Lundberg said. He went on to suggest that ESPN’s prediction may have been the reason for the confusion.. “If I had to guess, you know, that ESPN estimate of August 12 as her return and the fact that there had been no official status updates from the team since, put it up in the air.”

It remains to be seen whether Caitlin Clark will make another appearance this season, but all signs point towards her not returning until next year. What’s your take on this? Do you see Caitlin Clark coming back anytime soon?