Caitlin Clark will miss at least two weeks of WNBA action with a left quad strain, the Indiana Fever has announced.
The news will come as a devastating blow to the WNBA, whose ratings are dependent on a fit and healthy Clark – far and away the biggest name in the league.
It is not yet clear how serious the injury is, with the Fever’s statement worryingly only revealing she would miss ‘a minimum of two weeks’.
Further updates, the team added, ‘will be provided, as available, following re-evaluation.’
It is also unknown how Clark sustained the injury, with her finishing Saturday’s 90-88 loss to the New York Liberty seemingly unhurt.
The Fever are four games into the new season and Clark has been at the heart of the action, already becoming embroiled in the next chapter of her rivalry with Angel Reese.
Caitlin Clark is set to miss at least two weeks of action after straining her left quad
Clark was bruised during Saturday’s game but finished without any apparent injury
That will be put on hold for now, though, with Clark likely to miss at least four games – including the next showdown with Reese in Chicago on June 7.
Indiana next play on Wednesday against the Mystics, before hosting the Sun and Mystics. They are then on the road at the Sky, before Caitlin’s potential return on June 10 against Atlanta Dream.
The quad strain is the first injury Clark has suffered in her fledgling WNBA career, which saw her crowned Rookie of the Year last season.
From an Indiana Fever on-court perspective, the news will come as a blow to the team given their 2-2 record even with their superstar player.
More widely, though, the news of Clark’s absence is a huge issue for the WNBA, whose ratings are through the roof purely because of the Fever star’s arrival in the league.
Clark and Angel Reese began the season with a clash to reignite their intense rivalry
Reese had to be held back after the incident while Clark walked away from the drama
A recent study revealed that Clark was responsible for 26.5 percent of all the WNBA’s economic activity in 2024, per Sports Illustrated.
That includes revenue from merchandise, ticket sales, and television rights deals.
For the 2025 season, Ryan Brewer, a finance expert and an associate professor of finance at Indiana University-Columbus, believes that Clark could force that number to grow even further.
‘If things just go as they were, and we have an expanded season of 22 home games with modest inflation, I’m looking at $875 [million],’ Brewer told NBC News.
‘And I could easily see that eclipsing a billion dollars on the economic impact of Caitlin Clark this year.’
The new WNBA season, meanwhile, is still less than a fortnight old but Clark has already become engulfed in controversy in three of her four games so far.
Rivals Clark and Reese clashed during the Indiana Fever’s season-opening win against the Chicago Sky on Saturday.
A few days later, Clark was once again embroiled in an angry confrontation with a rival player
Reese attempted to confront her rival after the Fever star slapped her arm – hard enough to knock the ball loose and send Reese to the floor.
‘You’re crazy as f***,’ Reese could be seen shouting in Clark’s direction.
After the game, Reese was in no mood to talk about the incident – in part because her team was emphatically beaten by the Fever, losing 58-93.
‘Basketball play, refs got it right, move on,’ Reese, who top-scored for her team with 12 points, said in a post-game press conference.
Clark claimed after the game that there was no underlying tension between her and Reese but added that she disagree with the refs who upgraded her foul to a flagrant foul.
‘Let’s not make it something that it’s not,’ Clark said. ‘It was just a good play on the basketball. I’m not sure what the ref saw to upgrade it, and that’s up to their discretion. It’s a take foul to put them at the free-throw line.
‘I’ve watched a lot of basketball in my life, that’s exactly what it was. I wasn’t trying to do anything malicious. That’s not the type of player I am.’
But their rivalry dates back to college, when Reese helped lead LSU to victory over Clark’s Iowa Hawkeyes for the 2022-23 national championship. Reese appeared to taunt Clark by waving her hand in front of her face and pointing to her ring finger.
Clark is easily the biggest player in the WNBA and her absence will be a huge blow to ratings
A day after their latest run-in, the WNBA launched a racism investigation. The league released a statement relating to ‘alleged hateful fan comments’ at the Sky-Fever game.
‘The WNBA strongly condemns racism, hate, and discrimination in all forms – they have no place in our league or in society. We are aware of the allegations and are looking into the matter,’ a statement read.
The Fever released their own statement from Pacers Sports & Entertainment CEO Mel Raines.
‘We are aware of the allegations of inappropriate fan conduct during yesterday’s game and we are working closely with the WNBA to complete their investigation,’ it read. ‘We stand firm in our commitment to providing a safe environment for all WNBA players.’
