One Indiana Fever Stat Raises Alarms After Caitlin Clark Injury Announcement

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Sean Deveney | Last updated May 27, 2025 12:24 AM ET

Once the surprise of the quad injury that will knock out Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark for the next two weeks--at minimum--wore off, the next task was to have a look at what, exactly, the Fever have on hand and assess how the team will need to play in order to stay afloat and win some games.

It obviously won't be easy. Clark is averaging a team-high 19.0 points and a league-high 9.3 assists per game, with 6.0 rebounds. Clark is shooting just 40.3% from the field, but she is taking 15.5 shots per game, a team high, tied with Kelsey Mitchell.

Clark's usage rate is 25.9%, the highest on the team and 13th in the league. She is not easily replaced.

Still, the Fever made adding guard depth a point of emphasis this offseason, and the team brought in experienced veterans Sydney Colson and DeWanna Bonner, both of whom are in the back end of their careers but are capable of doing more with Clark out. Kelsey Mitchell, Sophie Cunningham and Lexie Hull have already been playing big minutes.

The Fever have proven players. But at ESPN, league insider Alexa Philippou points out that having players is not quite enough--the Fever have a stunning minus-25.3 rating differential (107.5 on, 82.2 off) with Clark off the floor.

She wrote: "Clark accounts for so much of their offensive production that it'll be difficult to make up for that. So far this season, Indiana's offensive rating is 107.5 with Clark on the floor and 82.2 in 20 minutes with her off it. Assuming their scoring output takes a hit without Clark, that'll put pressure on the Fever's defense to step up even more so they can pick up some wins that way."

With a rating of 93.2, the Fever have the No. 3 defense in the WNBA this season. Indiana will next play on Wednesday in Washington against the Mystics.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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