Caitlin Clark's injury-plagued sophomore season was a disaster for the WNBA, the Fever and herself

Caitlin Clark's sophomore season started with a triple-double and ended with a press release. 

Early on Thursday evening, nearly four months after Clark walked off the floor to a standing ovation from an adoring Gainbridge Fieldhouse crowd during a 35-point win over the Chicago Sky on opening day -- a sign that perhaps the Indiana Fever's goal to compete for a championship was not outlandish -- the team announced that she would not return to the court this season. 

Caitlin Clark injury update: Fever star out for rest of 2025 WNBA season, calls it 'incredibly frustrating'

Jack Maloney

"I had hoped to share a better update, but I will not be returning to play this season," Clark wrote on social media. "I spent hours in the gym every day with the singular goal of getting back out there, disappointed isn't a big enough word to describe how I am feeling. 

"I want to thank everyone who had my back through all the uncertainty. This has been incredibly frustrating, but even in the bad, there is good. The way the fans continued to show up for me, and for the Fever, brought me so much joy and important perspective. I am so proud of how this team has only gotten stronger through adversity this year. Now it's time to close out the season and claim our spot in the playoffs." 

Clark, who last played on July 15, was limited to 13 games this season due to an array of injuries: left quad tightness during training camp, a left quad strain on May 24, a left groin injury on June 26 and a right groin injury on July 15. Maybe she would have made it back if not for a left ankle bone bruise during her rehab process on Aug. 7, but it's impossible to say for sure.  

What is certain is that Clark's inability to stay healthy this summer was a disaster -- for herself, her teammates, the Fever organization and the WNBA. 

A 'one-trick pony'

In retrospect, Clark probably shouldn't have suited up for the Fever's preseason tilt against the Brazilian national team at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Iowa's campus one day after sitting out of their first preseason game due to left quad tightness, but nothing was going to stop her from taking the court in front of her hometown fans that day. 

Plus, there was nothing to suggest that Clark's quad issue was serious, and she had been an iron woman to that point. Clark played in every single game during her four seasons at Iowa and all 42 of her regular-season and playoff contests as a rookie. Prior to this summer, the last time Clark had missed a game due to injury was her sophomore year of high school. 

After the fact, however, it's easy to trace a throughline from Clark pushing through some quad tightness in May, to her brutal midseason shooting slump, to the right groin injury in July that eventually ended her season. Even when Clark was on the court this summer, she was rarely, if ever, 100%. 

Aside from her opening-day triple-double and a brilliant 32-point, eight-rebound, nine-assist effort against the reigning champion New York Liberty upon her initial return from injury, most of the discussion about Clark's on-court performance this season was negative. 

Clark averaged 16.5 points, five rebounds and 8.8 assists, but shot 36.7% from the field, including 27.9% from 3-point range. When she failed to make a 3-pointer in a May 22 win over the Dream, it snapped a streak of 140 games with a made 3, dating back to her sophomore season at Iowa. She would go on to have two more games without a make from behind the arc and shot just 7 of 49 on 3-point attempts in her final seven appearances. For the season, she was 2 of 35 from downtown on the road. 

Clark's reward for trying to fight through injuries was a blow to her reputation. 

Golden State Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase took a victory lap after her team held Clark to 11 points on 3 of 14 from the field on June 19.

"We know she doesn't like physicality," Nakase said. "We know she wants to get to that left stepback." 

ESPN analyst Carolyn Peck went on TV and said that the Fever were "even more dangerous when Caitlin Clark doesn't play" after Indiana scored an upset win over the Las Vegas Aces on July 3 without Clark. 

NBA All-Star Jeff Teague chimed in to call Clark a "one-trick pony" and said that the WNBA had "figured her out" later in July, while Clark was in the middle of the worst slump of her career. 

In addition to dealing with the chore of constant rehab and the mental anguish of not being able to play the game she loves, Clark had to listen to greatly exaggerated reports of her demise. If there's any silver lining to this situation, it's that Clark should have extra motivation to prove everyone wrong next season. 

Championship dreams fade

Following her historic collegiate career at Iowa, Clark burst onto the WNBA scene last season and immediately established herself as one of the league's best players. She led the Fever to the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and won Rookie of the Year while setting the league's single-game and single-season assist records. In addition, Clark finished fourth in MVP voting and became the first rookie to make the All-WNBA First Team since Candace Parker in 2008. 

Clark's instant success allowed the Fever to put the pedal to the floor this offseason. They announced plans for a new practice facility (which they broke ground on Thursday, hours before Clark was ruled out for the season), revamped their front office, hired Stephanie White as coach and brought in half a dozen new players, including veterans DeWanna Bonner, Natasha Howard and Sophie Cunningham. 

"Yeah, absolutely," Clark said during training camp, when asked if the team had been "explicit" about wanting to win a title in 2025. 

When a reporter followed up, asking what success would look like this season, Clark doubled down: "a championship." 

The Fever never had a chance to chase those dreams. 

Bonner quit on the team after nine appearances, and five players, including Clark, have been ruled out with season-ending injuries. Even one of their coaches went down with a torn Achilles tendon. Despite all of the adversity the Fever have faced this season, a healthy Clark would have at least given them a shot come playoff time. Now, there's no guarantee they'll even make the postseason. 

Breaking down the Fever injury situation: Caitlin Clark, Sophie Cunningham among several players sidelined

Jack Maloney

As of Thursday, the Fever were 21-20 -- 8-5 with Clark and 13-15 without her -- sitting in eighth place, just 1 ½ games up on the Los Angeles Sparks for the final playoff berth. Even if the Fever do hang on to clinch a spot, there's a good chance they will be the No. 8 seed and have to face the league-leading Minnesota Lynx in the first round. 

No matter their opponent, the Fever will be underdogs in the first round of the playoffs. And even if Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston -- both candidates for All-WNBA recognition -- manage to lead an upset in a short best-of-three series, there's no hope of a deep run without Clark. After the Fever announced she was done for the season, their championship odds plummeted to +4500 at Caesars. 

'The most popular athlete in America'

On May 15, the day before the 2025 season started, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert went on Bill Simmons' podcast and called Clark the "most popular athlete in America." 

"It is a balance, but she's a generational talent," Engelbert continued. "No league is ever about one player, but in this case, Caitlin brought tens of millions of new viewers into the W. And there's no denying that impact."

The 2024 Draft, featuring Clark as the No. 1 overall pick, had a record 2.4 million viewers. This year, the draft was down to 1.25 million viewers. The 2024 All-Star Game, featuring Clark and Team WNBA against Team USA also set a record with 3.4 million viewers. With Clark sidelined for this year's All-Star Game in Indianapolis, the ratings dropped to 2.2 million. 

Last season, Game 2 of the Fever's first-round playoff series against the Connecticut Sun peaked at 2.5 million viewers. The 2024 Finals averaged 1.6 million viewers. It's easy to guess how Clark's injury will affect the figures for the 2025 playoffs later this month. 

Aside perhaps from LeBron James in the NBA, no single player in North American sports is more important to their respective league than Clark. Everything she touches turns to gold, from TV ratings to merchandise sales to attendance figures. 

The WNBA is still having a successful season -- the league broke its single-season attendance record, thanks in part to the extended 44-game season -- but there's no debate that Clark brings extra eyeballs to the league. 

The reality is simple: When she's not playing, fewer people are interested.