Caitlin Clark Reassures After Injury Scare: Fever Preseason Takeaways
Caitlin Clark was spectacular for the Indiana Fever on Thursday, but the same couldn't be said for the team's defense in a 95-80 preseason loss to the Dallas Wings.
Clark shrugged off her shooting woes from the preseason opener against the New York Liberty (a Fever victory), connecting on 4-6 shots and 2-3 from deep. She also hit on 11-13 from the free throw line to give her 21 points on just 6 shots—ridiculous efficiency.
The Fever star has looked strong in both exhibition contests for Indiana, but the one against the Wings did come with a slight scare given the injury-riddled season Clark dealt with in 2025.
Clark came up limping following a reckless closeout from Alanna Smith in the third quarter that resulted in a flagrant 1 and three free throws. Clark seemed intent to stay in the game but checked out shortly thereafter not to return, though she had played the same 16 minutes she logged in the first preseason contest by then.
Caitlin Clark comes up limping after a reckless close out which was ruled a flagrant 1 pic.twitter.com/tqcktOk9Aa
— Clark Report (@CClarkReport) May 1, 2026
Clark said, "I feel fine" after the game, stating that she just fell hard on her knee cap on the play.
Raven Johnson Shines Again for Fever
One recurring positive for Indiana in the preseason has been the play of rookie Raven Johnson.
The South Carolina product has acclimated quickly to the team and her penchant for being a menace defensively has carried over to the professional level. Johnson had 5 assists and 5 steals in her 21 minutes of action, showing that she can be a valuable addition to the squad both as a perimeter defender and a backup point guard to Clark.
Fever Can't Get Stops, Get Crushed on Glass
Johnson was one of the lone bright spots on the defensive end, as the Fever could not stop the attack of the Wings. Dallas scored 36 points in the second quarter alone, with Paige Bueckers leading the way pouring in 20 points in her 20 minutes on the floor.
It's hard to tell how much of that might have been due to Indiana not wanting to show Dallas the defensive coverages they will use when the teams meet for real to start their regular seasons on May 9, but it was clear how much the Fever missed star center Aliyah Boston.
Boston and Lexie Hull (whose defense could have been used as well) have been held out of both preseason contests in what coach Stephanie White dubbed as a "cautious" approach.
The absence of Boston was glaring, as the Fever's frontcourt is perilously thin with her unavailable. Indiana struggled on the boards, losing the rebounding battle to Dallas 33-21.
Damiris Dantas, one of the backup options to Boston, had a rough go of things in her return to the team following visa issues, shooting just 2-11.
Other Fever Players Have Tough Outing
Aside from Clark, the starting lineup went cold. Myisha Hines-Allen was 2-3 from the field but Kelsey Mitchell and Monique Billings combined to shoot 5-17 and Sophie Cunningham didn't attempt a field goal. The other four starters registered 20 points to Clark's 21.
Again, things were impacted by Boston and Hull being unavailable, as those two will likely start alongside Clark, Billings and Mitchell come the regular season.
Shatori Walker-Kimbrough was effective once again in her bench minutes, strengthening her grip as the frontrunner for the final roster spot.
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Robin Lundberg is a media veteran and hoops head who has spent the bulk of his career with iconic brands like Sports Illustrated and ESPN. His insights have also been featured on platforms such as Fox and CNN and he can currently be heard hosting shows for Sirius XM and on his popular YouTube channel. And now he brings his basketball expertise to Women's Fastbreak On SI and Indiana Fever On SI!
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