On Thursday, July 17th, the Indiana Fever's Instagram account announced that the superstar Caitlin Clark will not take part in the WNBA All-Star weekend, which will be held in Indianapolis on July 18th and 19th.
Why Caitlin Clark will not feature in WNBA All-Star game?
This comes as the most disappointing news for the Indiana Fever's fanbase as they were hoping to see their star player suit up and lead her team as a captain in her second WNBA All-Star game.
However, the fans will now have to wait for another years to see their star in action. Following the news that Clark will be missing the All-Star weekend, Underdog WNBA revealed the player who is all set to replace the guard in the All-Star game.
Brittany Sykes will be replacing the defending Rookie of the Year as Clark is recovering from a groin injury. While Sykes may not be as popular as Caitlin Clark, but overall she is a good addition to Team Clark against a mighty Team Collier.
Brittany Sykes is averaging 17.1 points, 3.6 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game this season. She is a good replacement for Clark, giving that the Fever's guard was not on top of her game in the last few games. Apart from Clark missing the All-Star weekend, another player who will be missing from Team Clark is A'ja Wilson. The three time MVP injured her wrist earlier this month.
Stephanie White on Caitlin Clark missing the All-Star game
The whole fanbase of Caitlin Clark was disappointed after they heard that their superstar will not be featuring in both, the 3-point contest and the All-Star game. However, her decision comes looking at the future and Indiana Fever's coach, Stephanie White realizes it.
On Thursday, while talking to the media, Stephanie White expressed her excitement of the All-Star weekend taking place in Indianapolis. She even pointed out that her team's future is important to her.
It's a big deal for us to have All-Star in Indianapolis, of course with Caitlin being a focal point of all that, White said. As the coach of the Indiana Fever, it's not a bigger deal than our long-term season.
Caitlin Clark has been dealing with lingering injury issues this season, which has kept her at the sidelines for more than ten games now. First, she suffered a quadriceps injury in May, which saw her miss five games.
After she had returned, she suffered a left groin injury that saw her miss another five games on the trot. She came back form second injury last week but she reaggravated the problem in the team's 85-77 win over the Connecticut Sun. This time around, Clark choose to recover fully and then return to the court.