Caitlin Clark Ruled OUT vs. Liberty
Caitlin Clark’s All-Star break has begun a little earlier than anticipated: the Indiana fever announced on Wednesday that the sophomore sensation would miss the Knights game against the New York liberty with a right groin injury.
Clark previously left Indiana’s last game, an 85-77 win over Connecticut in Boston, with the injury, one that has kept her in and out of the Fever lineup in recent weeks. Indiana (12-10) has overcome it well enough to go 5-2 in July, including an upset win over league-leading Minnesota in the Commissioner’s Cup final at the start of the month.
This continues an injury-riddled season for Clark, who has missed time at several points this season with various lower body injuries. She previously missed time after enduring a quad injury during the first matchup with the Liberty on May 24 in Indianapolis.
Time will tell what Clark’s fate for All-Star weekend will be: the Indiana star is set to captain one of the two teams in Saturday night’s main event at her home floor of Gainbridge Fieldhouse (8:30 p.m. ET, ABC) and was also named one of the five participants, alongside Wednesday opponent and All-Star Game teammate Sabrina Ionescu, in Friday’s 3-Point Contest.
Though still an anticipated matchup on the final day of action before the break, Wednesday’s Liberty-Fever game is still missing some significant star power: New York (14-6) is still missing Jonquel Jones due to an ankle injury, though the reigning WNBA Finals MVP recently stated her intentions in the first post-break game on July 22, also against Indiana at home.
Geoff Magliocchetti is a veteran sportswriter who contributes to a variety of sites on the "On SI" network. In addition to the Yankees/Mets, Geoff also covers the New York Knicks, New York Liberty, and New York Giants and has previously written about the New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Staten Island Yankees, and NASCAR.