INDIANAPOLIS (AP) The Indiana Fever thought Caitlin Clarks return might solve their wild first-half ride. They were getting healthy, beating good teams and starting to meet expectations.
Then the two-time All-Star got hurt again in the final minute of last Tuesdays game at Connecticut. Indiana lost by double digits the next night to defending champion New York.
Clark missed last weekends All-Star festivities in Indianapolis and is likely to sit out Tuesday night when the Fever again play the Liberty. Its all creating uncertainty about Clark and Indianas championship aspirations.
These soft tissue injuries sometimes nag until you can actually have time to really allow them to heal in the offseason, Indiana coach Stephanie White said after Sundays practice. So well just take it one day at a time and well continue, as a group, to progress together.
Neither White nor Clark have provided a timetable for Clarks return.
As a rookie, Clark helped the Fever snap a six-year playoff drought and during the three-game winning streak before her latest injury, she had 40 points, 29 assists, six steals and 10 turnovers in 79 minutes.
Her name and that of the leagues other superstars have packed arenas and been the focal point of broadcast deals.
Amid a rash of injuries, the WNBA needs its top players on the court more than ever. According to The Next, which tracks injuries in the league, there have been more than 140 injuries so far this season.
Those numbers fed into last weekends debate over whether league officials should consider extending the season next year now that teams are playing 44 games instead of 40.
I feel theres been quite a few injuries over the course of the beginning of this season for quite a few people, Clark said Saturday, noting some injuries created minutes restrictions for other All-Star selections. A lot of people have been in the same boat as myself.
Simply extending the season creates yet another problem competing against the NFL and college football telecasts deeper into September. Thats something that could be resolved in a new collective bargaining agreement.
Until then, though, Indiana must learn to deal with Clarks third absence this season, so far resulting in 10 missed games. Clark did not miss a single game in college or her rookie season with the Fever.
Indiana has maintained a winning record (12-11) and playoff positioning despite the injuries. The Fever were also able to win the Commissioners Cup over Minnesota with a 74-59 win without Clark.
The team also overcame the departure of DeWanna Bonner, who lost her starting job after three games and played in only nine before being waived and returning to Phoenix.
And, of course, it took time for everyone to get on the same page following a massive offseason overhaul that included the hiring of a new general manager, Amber Cox; the return of White Indianas original No. 22; and the addition of other players with title-winning experience.
I think its been a rollercoaster ride with peaks and valleys, injuries, switching lineups, three-time All-Star guard Kelsey Mitchell said. I think thats part of being a professional athlete. But I think you need to go through things like this to be one of the teams they talk about at the end of the season.
The Fever believes it still can be one of those teams.
With Mitchell leading Indiana in scoring at 19.1 points per game and All-Star center Aliyah Boston showcasing a niftier passing game to go along with averages of 15.8 points and 7.6 rebounds, Indiana still has two of its foundational pillars on the court.
Indiana also has more options such as forward Natasha Howard and backup guard Sophie Cunningham to help fill in the gaps until Clark returns.
Consistency, attention to detail, making sure defensively were a beast unit, Cunningham said as she identified other needed fixes. I think it all starts on the defensive end with our intensity and our aggressiveness. When we do that, we tend to win those ballgames. Youre going to have a little bit of slippage every now and then, but you cant have landslides.
Ultimately, though, the lingering question is whether Clark can stay healthy long enough to push Indiana into championship position.
Working your way back into it is really difficult, White said. She has to give herself some grace. Shes coming back from an injury.
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印第安纳波利斯（美联社）——印第安纳狂热队曾认为凯特琳·克拉克的回归或许能扭转他们上半赛季的动荡局面。随着队员状态回升、接连战胜强队，球队正逐渐达到预期水平。
这位两度入选全明星的球员在上周二对阵康涅狄格队的比赛最后一分钟再度受伤。次日晚上，印第安纳队以两位数分差不敌卫冕冠军纽约队。
克拉克缺席了上周末在印第安纳波利斯举行的全明星庆祝活动，并很可能在狂热队再次对阵自由队的周二晚间比赛中继续缺阵。这一切都为克拉克和印第安纳队的冠军前景蒙上了不确定性。
印第安纳队主教练斯蒂芬妮·怀特在周日的训练后表示：“这些软组织损伤有时会持续困扰，直到休赛期才能真正有时间让它们痊愈。所以我们会循序渐进，作为一个团队继续共同进步。”
怀特和克拉克均未就克拉克的回归时间表作出说明。
作为新秀，克拉克帮助狂热队终结了长达六年的季后赛荒。在她最近一次受伤前的三连胜期间，她在79分钟内贡献了40分、29次助攻、6次抢断，同时也有10次失误。
她与联盟其他巨星的名字不仅让球场座无虚席，更成为转播协议的核心焦点。
在伤病频发的情况下，WNBA比以往任何时候都更需要顶级球员上场效力。据追踪联盟伤情的媒体The Next报道，本赛季至今已有超过140起伤病案例。
由于各支球队本赛季的比赛场次已从40场增至44场，这些数据引发了上周末关于联盟官员是否应考虑在下赛季延长赛程的讨论。
克拉克周六表示："我感觉本赛季初已有不少人遭遇伤病困扰。"他指出，某些伤病导致其他全明星球员的上场时间受限，"许多人和我处境相同。"
单纯延长赛季会引发另一个问题——与更深入九月份的**NFL**（美国职业橄榄球大联盟）和大学橄榄球转播形成竞争。这一问题或许能在新的劳资协议中得到解决。
但在此之前，印第安纳队必须学会应对克拉克本赛季第三次缺席的情况——截至目前已导致她缺阵10场比赛。无论是大学时期还是效力狂热队的新秀赛季，克拉克从未缺席过任何一场比赛。
尽管遭遇伤病困扰，印第安纳队仍保持着12胜11负的胜绩并稳居季后赛席位。狂热队更是在克拉克缺阵的情况下，以74比59战胜明尼苏达队，捧起总裁杯冠军奖杯。
球队还克服了德瓦娜·邦纳离队的影响——这位球员在三场比赛后失去首发位置，仅出战九场便被裁掉，最终重返菲尼克斯。
当然，在经历了包括新任总经理安珀·考克斯（Amber Cox）的聘用、球队元老22号怀特重返印第安纳队，以及引进其他拥有夺冠经验的球员等一系列重大休赛期调整后，团队需要时间才能达成共识。
“这段旅程就像坐过山车，有高峰也有低谷，经历了伤病和阵容调整，”三届全明星后卫凯尔西·米切尔说道，“但这就是职业运动员生涯的一部分。我认为只有经历这些考验，才能成为赛季结束时被人们热议的球队之一。”
狂热队仍坚信自己能够跻身强队之列。
米切尔以场均19.1分领跑印第安纳队得分榜，全明星中锋阿莉娅·波士顿则展现出更灵巧的传球技巧，同时贡献场均15.8分和7.6个篮板。这两大核心球员仍是印第安纳队在赛场上的基石。
印第安纳队还有更多选择，例如前锋娜塔莎·霍华德和替补后卫索菲·坎宁安，她们可以在克拉克回归前填补空缺。
坎宁安在指出其他需要改进之处时说道："保持稳定性、注重细节、确保我们在防守端成为一支强悍之师。我认为一切要从防守端的强度和侵略性开始。当我们做到这些时，往往就能赢得比赛。偶尔出现小失误在所难免，但绝不能出现全面崩盘的情况。"
然而归根结底，悬而未决的问题是克拉克能否长期保持健康，带领印第安纳队冲击冠军宝座。
怀特表示：“重新找回状态确实非常困难。她需要给自己一些宽容，毕竟她正从伤病中恢复过来。”
与朱亚文相恋9年, 分手后嫁富豪老公的潘禹彤, 现在过得怎么