Indiana Fever Faced With New Roster Decision Amid Caitlin Clark Injury originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The Indiana Fever recently lost veteran guards Sydney Colson and Aari McDonald to season-ending injuries, while All-Star playmaker Caitlin Clark remains out indefinitely due to a groin issue. As a result, the team signed former WNBA All-Star Odyssey Sims to a hardship contract.
Advertisement
Despite the signing, however, the Fever can still make another addition to the team, albeit with a catch.
Can the Fever Sign Another Player While Caitlin Clark Remains Out?
With three guards sidelined for the Fever, their regular-season roster went down to nine healthy players. The WNBA rules dictate that the teams can sign players via a basic hardship contract if at least two players are out for at least three weeks and through an emergency hardship contract exception if their active players fall below 10.
Advertisement
That was why Indiana was able to bring in Sims without cutting anyone.
According to Chloe Peterson of IndyStar, however, the Fever can still sign another player to bring their roster to a total of 11 players. That is because they signed Sims to a “regular hardship contract” that “isn’t necessarily tied to the 10-available player rule.”
A Fever spokesperson also confirmed the development to Peterson, although it remains to be seen if the team will actually sign another hardship player.
Advertisement
Fever’s Clark Problem
If the Fever end up signing another player, though, they would need to cut one of the two hardship players they signed once Caitlin Clark returns. They wouldn’t need to do it if they only end up signing Sims alone.
Clark has not played for the Fever since July 15 against the Connecticut Sun, and the Fever have remained cautious in their approach to her recovery.
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) remains sidelined due to a groin injury.David Butler II-Imagn Images
Before Indiana’s Thursday game against the Phoenix Mercury, White said she has “no updates” on the All-Star guard’s status.
Advertisement
A recent report also highlighted that Clark has not done “any drills with the team as of yet,” suggesting that it might still take some time before she comes back.
Related: Sophie Cunningham Had No Words for Indiana Fever’s Season-Ending Injuries
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Aug 10, 2025, where it first appeared.
