Caitlin Clark injury update: Fever star feels 'really good,' will play in preseason game Saturday vs. Dream

Clark is dealing with a leg injury that has kept her out of one preseason game and limited her in practice

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark says she feels "really good," and will suit up in the team's preseason game against the Atlanta Dream on Saturday. All indications are that she will then be ready to go for the Fever's regular season opener against the Chicago Sky on May 17.  

"Excited to get out there and play again tomorrow, work on things that we need to work on," Clark said Friday. "Our medical staff has been really helpful. I feel really good, honestly." 

Fever coach Stephanie White told reporters Wednesday the team has been "very cautious" with Clark during training camp. Clark, the 2024 Rookie of the Year, has been dealing with a leg injury that kept her out of the team's first preseason game and has prevented her from being a full participant in practice. 

"She's been limited in practice, so we're still very cautious about working her way back and really letting her body kind of tell her how much she's able to do," White said. "We're really relying on the training staff, and she's making great progress. And that's what we need, just to make sure that we're super cautious."

Clark's exact injury remains unclear. The team officially called it a "left leg injury," while Clark told reporters last week she was dealing with "a little tightness." 

Whatever was bothering Clark was clearly not too serious, as she was able to take the floor for the Fever's preseason game against the Brazilian national team on Sunday, which also served as her Iowa homecoming. Clark put on a show in front of her hometown fans, finishing with 16 points, six rebounds and five assists, including a 36-foot bomb from behind her own logo on the Carver-Hawkeye Arena floor. 

Caitlin Clark returns to Iowa: Fever star puts on a show in WNBA preseason game vs. Brazil

Jack Maloney

Clark helped lead the Fever to the playoffs last season for the first time since 2016, and after hiring White as their new coach and adding a number of veterans -- including DeWanna Bonner, Natasha Howard and Sophie Cunningham -- the organization has big goals for 2025. 

To reach them, the Fever will need Clark healthy and at her best. It's no surprise, then, that the team has been extremely careful during training camp. With Clark feeling good and able to suit up in the final preseason game, it seems their approach worked.