Indiana Fever All-Star Caitlin Clark will not play Saturday, June 27, against the Los Angeles Sparks.
“She’s OK. She’s gonna be out on Saturday, but she’s doing alright,” Fever coach Stephanie White said Friday. There’s currently no timetable for her return.
Advertisement
“No indication (of how long she’ll be out). Obviously, it’s a good time because we have all week next week. So, we’ll take this opportunity just to get her treatment, get her healthy, get her back on the floor and see what happens.”
After Saturday’s matchup against the Sparks, Indiana does not play again until Sunday, July 5, giving Clark more than a week of rest. Clark left a Wednesday, June 24, game against the Phoenix Mercury at the 5:15 mark in the third quarter with a back injury and did not return. The Fever lost to the Mercury 111-109 following Clark’s exit.
“It’s the same thing. Long-term health and wellness are the most important thing,” White said. The Fever expect guard Ty Harris to start in Clark’s place against Los Angeles.
Clark, 24, has been dealing with back issues since the 2026 season began. The former Iowa Hawkeye missed a May 20 matchup against Portland after she was ruled out late with a back injury.
Advertisement
Since that game, she’s been listed on the injury report as “probable (back)” for every matchup. The Fever were warned by the WNBA for improper injury reporting related to Clark’s status on the May 20 injury report.
Clark’s injury update also comes after the WNBA suspended Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas for a fist to her throat during the same matchup.Midway through the second quarter, Clark went to the floor and lost control of the ball while being defended by the Mercury’s Lexi Held. During a scramble for the ball, Thomas landed on Clark, pushing her fist into Clark’s throat. There was no foul called during the game for the incident.
The WNBA suspended Thomas for one game on Thursday and upgraded the non-call to a Flagrant-2 foul. Thomas was also fined $1,000. White called the exchange a “cheap shot” and panned the league’s officiating.
“Absolutely disrespectful. We spent all offseason looking at officiating, and I still say the one thing that we keep asking for is consistency,” White said. “(Clark) is not called the same way as everybody else is called. The fist in the throat is crazy. It’s crazy. It’s dangerous.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Caitlin Clark out vs L.A. Sparks with back injury, no timeline for return
