Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White said it was a “sigh of relief” after star guard Caitlin Clark avoided injury on a scary fall early in the third quarter of the team’s 95-80 preseason loss to the Dallas Wings on Thursday. Clark herself said she feels “good” and did not appear concerned during her postgame press conference.
Clark, who was limited to 13 games last season due to an array of lower-body injuries, came up hobbling after being fouled on a 3-pointer by Alanna Smith. The call was reviewed and upgraded to a Flagrant 1 for a reckless closeout because Smith got in Clark’s landing space. While Clark stayed in to shoot her free throws, she left immediately afterward and did not return.
“I just landed on my kneecap really hard,” Clark said after the game, while also praising the officials for their work in that situation and throughout the night.
“I know there’s a committee of people that really wanted (the officials) to start calling things, and I thought they did a great job of that,” Clark said. “Honestly, I thought the refs were great, and it’s preseason, so you’re probably going to see more fouls called. I expect that number to drop. But I think overall, it’s going to improve the product.”
Clark finished the night with 21 points and four assists on 4 of 6 from the field and 11 of 13 from the free-throw line. Preseason stats are unofficial, but if they counted, her 13 attempts would be the second most in her career. In 55 regular-season and playoff games, Clark has only taken 10 or more free throws four times. If she can get to the line for easy points this season, it would go a long way toward improving her efficiency and boosting the Fever’s already elite offense.
As for her early exit on Thursday, Fever coach Stephanie White confirmed that it was “extra precaution” to take her out after the foul and had nothing to do with an injury.
“We had planned for her to come out about that time anyway,” White said. “It was just an extra precaution getting her out in that moment, but the plan was for her to start the third quarter and then get her out quickly.”
“It was like, alright, she took one. And sometimes when you’ve come back from injury, depending on what the injury is, you gotta feel that a little bit first,” White continued. “You gotta be like, ‘OK, yep, I can shake that one off, let’s go up there and knock down the free throws.”
Clark and the Fever will conclude their preseason action on Saturday against the Nigerian national team, and will begin their 2026 campaign on May 9 against the Wings in a highly anticipated showdown that will feature the last four No. 1 overall picks: Aliyah Boston (2023), Clark (2024), Paige Bueckers (2025) and Azzi Fudd (2026).
