Fever Coach Notes What Caitlin Clark Must Show Before Injury Return
The Indiana Fever's August 26 game against the Seattle Storm marks the 16th straight game that star guard Caitlin Clark has missed this season. Not to mention that 10 or so games she missed due to other injuries earlier on in the season, which means she has only been active for 13 games in 2025.
Given how important Clark is to the Fever's offense functioning to its full capacity (and how dramatically the entire offensive flow and scheme changes when she isn't on the court), it's amazing that the Fever have managed to amass a winning record to this point. However, their winning record is in jeopardy on Tuesday, as they will fall to an even 19-19 if they lose to the Storm at home.
The hope is still that Clark will return to the court at some point this season. However, with the regular season ticking down and Fever coach Stephanie White has said in the past that Clark needs to return to practice and participate fully (which she hasn't done yet) before an in-game return is possible. Therefore, No. 22's chances of returning lessen with each passing day.
Stephanie White Speaks on Caitlin Clark Injury Return Requirements
White spoke with the media before Tuesday's game. She was asked about what she wants to see from Clark in order to greenlight her return at one point, and sent an interesting message.
"She went through our walkthrough yesterday. Today it was very short, prior to gametime. But she went through it yesterday. And I want to see her in practice. Live in practice," White said, per an X post from Scott Agness.
"I want to see her continue to work to not just build endurance, but to be able to handle contact, 94 feet, as it's going to be in-game. And to be able to do that and sustain from an endurance standpoint. And that's going to take multiple practices to make sure that there's no regression. And as most of us know, as we get fatigued, we look different. And see how she plays through fatigue," White continued.
Caitlin Clark participated in the team's walk-through before a second straight game.
— Scott Agness (@ScottAgness) August 26, 2025
Stephanie White wants to see her in live practice sessions, build endurance, handle contact & more: pic.twitter.com/blQFcQ4gMu
White was then asked whether Indiana has enough team practices to determine that at this point in the season, to which she responded, "Not necessarily team practices. But being able to put together [3x3], [4x4], and different things that we can go against and match up with."
While this might not be the update Fever fans were hoping for, it definitely still seems like there's a chance Clark is back before the regular season ends.
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Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the Indiana Fever and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.
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