Left Quadriceps Injury Turns Blessing for Caitlin Clark After National Reporter’s Rude Awakening
“Punched in the face,” Fever star Kelsey Mitchell’s words would exactly define what happened in the CFG Bank Arena, Baltimore as Indiana fell 2-3 in an 83-77 road loss on Wednesday to the Washington Mystics. The reason? Caitlin Clark was on the sidelines, nursing her left quad strain she picked after the New York Liberty 90-88 home defeat. But heading into the matchup, the Fever knew they had to adjust. For the first ten minutes, they did. But then got lost as the youngest team in the WNBA this season sprinted ahead. Sure, the injury is a bad omen for a team who has been in the contention talks this season, but can it be a hidden opportunity? HC Stephanie White had already marked the next two weeks in red.
In Indy’s second practice sans Clark before the Wednesday matchup, Stephanie White had outlined what the point guard will do while resting– “Hear us talking about (the game) from the coach’s perspective.” Combine that with Clark’s basketball IQ, and this experiment just might work as the reigning league ROTY understands what exactly the team needs to focus on and puts her learnings to test when she returns after the four games she’s possibly going to miss. Although the Des Moines native was “frustrated” missing her very first game after 185 consecutive showdowns since her sophomore year at Dowling in 2017, apart from White, national reporter Ros Gold-Onwude also believes that this setback can be turned into a learning experience.
Speaking on the Good Follow podcast, Gold-Onwude said, “It’s unfortunate that she’s hurt right now. But I also think this might be a good thing ’cause the start to the season for Caitlin, if we’re going to be honest, has been a bit of a mixed bag, you know.
“So I think this is a useful moment for her to watch film, refocus, understand what is and isn’t working because she’s Caitlin Clark. She’s really that talented. So, there’s certainly been moments of brilliance like her knack for hitting a timely shot or an assist. She’s still filling up the stat sheet. She’s averaging 19 points, 9 assists, 6 rebounds, but there’s been some high inefficiency there.
“She’s not shooting the three ball well overall, she’s had a hard time putting it together from the three. And she’s turning it over far too much. And coach Stephanie White is willing to be honest and hold her accountable there. I think Caitlin’s willing to hold herself accountable there so I think while it’s certainly great production from Caitlin, there’s just a lot more efficiency and high-level play that she could be working towards. So perhaps it could be a blessing in disguise for her,” Gold-Onwude giving her take on Clark’s injury.
Certainly, the tell-tale signs were there. Let’s compare her stats for the first four games against her rookie season.
Statistic (Average across first 4 games)
Rookie Year
Sophomore Year
Points
17
19
Rebounds
4
6
Assists
5.5
9.3
Field Goal Percentage
41.17
40.3
Three-Point Percentage
33.4
31.4
Free Throw Percentage
100
75
Turnovers
6.5
5
Now in her rookie season, Clark faced heavy physicality from the W players and so we can see improvements in most aspects like her averaged points, rebounds, and a league-high assists. In fact, her turnovers have also come down, although still high. But the pain points have been her ‘made to attempted’ ratio, all decreased, albeit just little.
Clark’s incredible streak of 140 straight games with a made three came to a sudden stop in the second matchup against the Atlanta Dream, where she went 0-for-5 from deep. Then came the matchup with the Liberty, and things still looked off! She shot just 2-for-11 from beyond the arc. At that point, it felt like more than just a shooting slump.
Even Seerat Sohi noticed something wasn’t quite right, pointing out how most of Clark’s shots were drifting to the right. An aberration for a player known to go left to take shots. Not to mention her pre-season left quad injury that kept her out until the Iowa preseason exhibition against the Brazilian national team. Subtle but telling signs that her body might’ve been off.
This injury, as frustrating as it might be, also opens up a unique window for Caitlin Clark to grow, not just as a player but as a true student of the game. Her basketball IQ has always been one of her biggest strengths, and now she gets a chance to sharpen it even more.
Coach Stephanie White has already said Clark will be right there with the coaching staff during games, listening in on strategy talks and breaking things down from a different angle. That kind of insight is gold for any player looking to improve. So when she does return, don’t be surprised if she’s seeing the floor a little clearer, thinking a step ahead, and making even better decisions.
While Caitlin Clark will definitely use this time off to grow and come back even sharper, the Indiana Fever are already learning what life looks like without their superstar on the court. One game into what could be a four-game stretch without her, they’ve already had to adjust. And even with the loss to the Mystics, there was a silver lining! A big one, in fact!
DeWanna Bonner shines as Caitlin Clark watches from the sidelines
Wednesday night might not have gone the Fever’s way after losing 83-77 to the Mystics, but it wasn’t all bad news. One major bright spot? DeWanna Bonner. After a quiet start to the season on the offense, Bonner finally found her groove back against the Mystics!
She scored 21 points and grabbed 7 rebounds. It was the kind of breakout performance fans have been waiting for from the league’s third all-time leading scorer. This is the DeWanna Bonner we know, the one who’s earned back-to-back All-Star nods and helped her teams win two championships. Before Wednesday, she had just 10 points total this season. But now? It looks like she’s officially heating up. Still, this does not take away from her defensive presence.
The forward has been a nuisance for the opponents on the other side of the board even when she wasn’t able to score efficiently, bringing in the Bonner we knew from her Connecticut Sun days. And seemingly, she will be here to stay, adding to the sheets as much as she does to the overall experience level of the team.
Next up for the Fever? A showdown with the still-winless Sun. On paper, even without Caitlin Clark, Indiana has the talent and depth to get the job done. You’d expect them to take care of business. But this is the W, and if there’s one thing we’ve learned, it’s to expect the unexpected. Stay tuned to find out if the Fever can finally break their 2-game losing streak.
