Injured Clark 'trying to enjoy' All-Star weekend

INDIANAPOLIS -- Caitlin Clark said she has tried to person arsenic overmuch amusive arsenic imaginable connected this WNBA All-Star play contempt the disappointment of not being capable to play.

The Indiana Fever guard, the apical vote-getter successful instrumentality balloting, suffered a close groin wounded successful Tuesday's triumph implicit Connecticut, which kept her from competing present successful Friday's 3-point shooting contention and Saturday's All-Star Game. Before the crippled she met the media with chap All-Star skipper Napheesa Collier of the Minnesota Lynx. The 2 teased each different astir whose squad was going to win, and they addressed immoderate questions astir the on-going corporate bargaining statement negotiations.

Clark besides spoke astir however she's been feeling during a celebratory play hosted by her franchise

"When the wounded happened, it was beauteous frustrating considering I knew what the coming days were gonna clasp for myself," she said. "But ... [this weekend] wasn't going to beryllium taken distant from me. Sure, possibly I'm not capable to play the games, but I tin inactive beryllium present and participate, and I person a ton of friends and household successful municipality that are having a truly bully time. So I've been trying to bask the champion I can.

"Still getting to beryllium astir and beryllium a portion of everything is truly important for myself and for the fans. They've been retired successful afloat force, whether they're coming into the crippled contiguous oregon whether they're conscionable enjoying each the festivities that are astir our city. So conscionable truly happy, not lone for Indianapolis and authorities of Indiana and our organization, but truly conscionable the league. I deliberation the play has been perfectly incredible."

As a rookie, Clark had 4 points, 10 assists and 2 steals successful past year's All-Star Game successful Phoenix. She played for Team WNBA, which bushed Team USA 117-109 successful a contention that helped hole the U.S. squad for the Olympics. Clark went connected to pb the league successful assists and 3-pointers arsenic the Fever made the playoffs for the archetypal clip since 2016.

Clark had ne'er missed a crippled successful her assemblage vocation astatine Iowa oregon successful her archetypal WNBA season. But this year, she has been retired 10 regular-season games positive the Commissioner's Cup last due to the fact that of injuries to her near quad, near groin and close groin.

"I consciousness similar there's been rather a fewer injuries implicit the people of the opening of the play for rather a fewer people," said Clark, who had to miss Saturday's crippled on with chap injured All-Stars Rhyne Howard of the Atlanta Dream and Satou Sabally of the Phoenix Mercury. "So a batch of radical [are] successful the aforesaid vessel arsenic myself.

"I'm not going to accidental I've been getting around-the-clock treatment. I've been inactive trying to bask this weekend, and having the equilibrium of that astatine the aforesaid clip [as] soaking each of this in. And, you know, erstwhile [Sunday] comes around, I volition wholly displacement my absorption to getting arsenic steadfast arsenic possible."

The Fever, 12-11 and Commissioner's Cup champions, person 3 games this coming week: Tuesday astatine New York (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET), Thursday astatine location vs. Las Vegas and Sunday astatine Chicago (ABC, 3 p.m. ET).