Caitlin Clark is getting set for her third season in the WNBA, hoping to take the Indiana Fever back to the playoffs and beyond. And the Fever got off to a good start as the preseason is underway, taking down Sabrina Ionescu and the New York Liberty 109-91 on the road at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Clark saw her first WNBA action against New York after missing most of the 2025 season, dealing with numerous injuries. And despite playing for Team USA at the FIBA World Cup qualifying tournament, the former Iowa Hawkeyes star looked a bit rusty against the Liberty, tallying seven points on 2-of-10 shooting, three rebounds and four assists in 17 minutes of action.
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Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) looks on from the sidelines.Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images
Clark has now entered the third year of her four-year rookie contract with the Indiana Fever. In her first two seasons, she earned $76,535 (2024) and $78,066 (2025). However, following the WNBA’s new collective bargaining agreement, which dramatically increased player salaries (with the league average rising nearly 400%), her salary has skyrocketed to $528,846 for the 2026 season.
And on Tuesday, the Fever elected to secure Clark for the future, exercising the All-WNBA point guard’s fourth-year option for the 2027 WNBA season, where she is set to make $597,596.
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“we have exercised Caitlin Clark’s fourth year option 🔥,” the Fever announced on X.
While Clark will see a major increase in salary over the next two years, she may decide that a new, much larger contract is in order, given her elite skill set and massive popularity. Thanks to the EPIC provision, a rule introduced in the new WNBA CBA, Clark could choose to renegotiate her fourth-year rookie salary and potentially sign a multi-year extension earlier than she otherwise could.
“In an unsurprising, yet necessary move for the Fever, they have exercised Caitlin Clark’s fourth-year option,” IndyStar’s Chloe Peterson wrote on X. “She is now officially under contract through 2027. Under EPIC, Clark will also be able to renegotiate her fourth-year salary and add an extension.”
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Clark and the Fever will open the 2026 WNBA regular season on Saturday, May 9, hosting Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Related: New York Liberty Announce Roster Move After Loss to Indiana Fever
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Apr 28, 2026, where it first appeared in the WNBA section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
