Caitlin Clark stays on sidelines as Fever lock up WNBA playoff spot originally appeared on The Sporting News
The Indiana Fever officially punched their ticket to the postseason on Sunday, but the celebration didn’t quite include their biggest star.
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Fever clinch without Clark on the floor
Indiana rolled past the Washington Mystics 94-65 to secure back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time in nearly a decade. It was another step forward for a team that has endured injuries, roster changes, and questions about depth throughout the year.
Caitlin Clark, who has been out since early summer with a season-ending injury, was present in the locker room after the win. While her teammates danced and celebrated in a TikTok video posted by Aliyah Boston, Clark sat at her locker scrolling on her phone, not joining in on the moment. The clip quickly spread across social media, with fans debating her absence from the team’s postgame energy.
Indiana finds a way
Clark only played 13 games this season but still managed to average 16.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 8.8 assists. Even without her, the Fever showed balance on Sunday with five players scoring in double figures. Boston, who has carried the team’s interior play all year, said the win was about resilience.
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“We never doubted ourselves,” Boston told reporters. “We knew we had enough to get here, no matter what we faced.”
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That confidence wasn’t easy to maintain. Indiana cut ties with DeWanna Bonner midseason, lost multiple players to injuries, and had to adjust its identity on the fly. But the group managed to pull through with one game left before the playoffs begin.
What’s next for the Fever
The Fever close the regular season on Tuesday against the Minnesota Lynx. Their final seeding is still undecided, but they’ll enter the postseason as either the sixth or seventh seed. That guarantees at least one home playoff game, something the franchise hasn’t hosted since 2016.
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Clark won’t be part of the on-court action this fall, but her presence still looms large over a Fever team determined to prove it can win in more ways than one.
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