Fever Coach Shares New Plan That Could Make Caitlin Clark Even Better

Caitlin Clark has missed the last five Indiana Fever games with a groin injury.
Caitlin Clark has missed the last five Indiana Fever games with a groin injury. / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
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Caitlin Clark has missed the last five Indiana Fever games due to a groin injury but she's been practicing more lately and a return to action could come Wednesday when the Fever play host to the Golden State Valkyries at 12 p.m. ET. When Clark does return to the court, she could benefit from what a new teammate brings to the Fever.

That player is Aari McDonald, the No. 3 pick in the the 2021 WNBA draft who was re-signed by the Fever after the team parted ways with DeWanna Bonner late last month.

McDonald is a play-making guard who Fever coach Stephanie White thinks can make things easier for Clark on the offensive end as she won't need to handle the ball so much.

"I think it will be really good to be able to get Caitlin off the ball a little bit more in certain situations and playing on the floor with Aari gives her that opportunity to do that," White said after practice on Monday. "I think it can give [Clark] a break. I think it can give her and our team different looks when that happens. This is the first time we’ve been able to practice that so I look forward to exploring that a little bit more."

Clark is asked to do a lot on offense and that may be the cause of some of the shooting struggles that she was going through before her latest injury.

The Fever are 9–9 on the year and are hopeful that once Clark gets healthy, she might become even more lethal thanks to the addition of McDonald.

It will be fun to see how this plays out for the two guards.


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Andy Nesbitt
ANDY NESBITT

Andy Nesbitt is the assistant managing editor of audience engagement at Sports Illustrated. He works closely with the Breaking and Trending News team to shape SI’s daily coverage across all sports. A 20-year veteran of the sports media business, he has worked for Fox Sports, For the Win, The Boston Globe and NBC Sports, having joined SI in February 2023. Nesbitt is a golf fanatic who desperately wants to see the Super Bowl played on a Saturday night.