Clark ruled – Caitlin Clark will miss the Indiana Fever’s game against the Las Vegas Aces on Sunday night as she continues recovering from a back injury. The decision comes after controversy in the WNBA deepened around her after a throat-punch by Phoenix Mercury’s Alyssa Th
Caitlin Clark’s recovery will keep her away from the court again on Sunday night.
The Indiana Fever star has been ruled out of the Fever’s game against the Las Vegas Aces as she continues recovering from a back injury. Clark announced on Friday that she will remain on the sidelines this weekend.
The timing is another difficult twist for Clark, who has history with more than one rival. Missing the Las Vegas matchup means she will not face Chennedy Carter. a player she has already clashed with after Carter’s bodycheck while both were in the WNBA. In 2024, Carter “brutally bodychecked” Clark while they played for the Chicago Sky.
Clark’s current back problem traces back to the ill-tempered encounter against the Phoenix Mercury last Wednesday. In that game, Alyssa Thomas sparked uproar by punching Clark in the throat while she was on the ground.
The incident reignited the debate around rough treatment in the league, with Clark—24 years old—having “regularly been subjected to brutality on the court” since entering the WNBA in 2024.
There was no penalty on the night for Thomas’s punch. Indiana coach Stephanie White called the no-call “absolutely egregious” and “utterly disrespectful.”
The punishment came later. The WNBA retroactively assessed a Flagrant II foul on Thomas the following day, suspending her for Saturday’s game against the Toronto Tempo.
With Clark now sidelined again due to the back injury, the Fever’s weekend looks shaped by absence rather than basketball drama—just days after the league’s fiercest conversation returned to physicality and protection for players.
Caitlin Clark Indiana Fever Las Vegas Aces WNBA Alyssa Thomas Phoenix Mercury Stephanie White Chennedy Carter Toronto Tempo Flagrant II back injury