Why Caitlin Clark’s late injury scratch could lead to WNBA punishing Fever originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Indiana Fever got their third win of the season on Wednesday night with a 90-73 win over the Portland Fire, but the game is being overshadowed by Caitlin Clark‘s status.
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The star guard missed the game on Wednesday, her first missed game of the season, even though she seemed to be healthy entering the night. The Fever downplayed Clark’s back injury, claiming it wasn’t serious and the team fully expected Clark to play against the Fire.
However, the way the Fever treated Clark’s injury is now being scrutinized. Clark was not on the injury report leading into the game against the Fire, and that decision could lead to the WNBA punishing Indiana.
Here’s why Clark’s injury report status is being questioned.
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Why did Caitlin Clark not play last night?
Caitlin Clark missed her first game of the season on Wednesday night with a back injury. Head coach Stephanie White said before the game that Clark woke up with a stiff back and spent practice on Tuesday getting treatment.
However, Clark was not on the injury report, leading to some questions to how the Fever handled the injury. White said there was nothing nefarious about it.
“Not everybody that doesn’t practice or gets a pro day is on the injury report. That happens all the time,” White said. “And she wasn’t listed on the injury report earlier because we expected her to play.”
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White didn’t have much more information on Clark’s injury, though she deferred to the training staff. Additionally, White said this wasn’t part of any load management by the team after Clark was injured for much of last year.
“Her back is sore. If there’s anything more detailed than that, that’s the training staff,” she added.
MORE: Why will Caitlin Clark be at this year’s Indy 500?
Why WNBA could punish Fever
The Fever may have broken WNBA rules by not disclosing Clark’s back injury on the injury report. According to the rules, WNBA teams “must designate a participation status and identify a specific injury, illness, other medical condition, or other reason for any player whose participation in the game may be affected for any reason.”
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If Indiana had any reason to believe that Clark could miss Wednesday night’s game, they would then be required to list Clark on the injury report the day before. As head coach Stephanie White said, Clark didn’t practice with the rest of the team on Tuesday; it appears the team was aware of the ailment.
However, White claims the team fully expected Clark to play, which is why the star didn’t appear on the injury report.
WNBA injury report rules
The WNBA has specific rules regarding how teams are required to treat the injury point so they remain transparent with the public. Here’s what the WNBA rulebook says:
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“WNBA teams must report information concerning player injuries, illnesses, other medical conditions, or rest for all WNBA games. By 5 p.m. local time the day before a game (other than the second day of a back-to-back), teams must designate a participation status and identify a specific injury, illness, other medical condition, or other reason for any player whose participation in the game may be affected for any reason. For the second game of a back-to-back, teams must report the above information by 1 p.m. local time on the day of the game.”
Any team that breaks these rules is subject to punishment, likely beginning with a fine but becoming more severe the more it occurs.
