Caitlin Clark can’t catch a break.<\/p>\n
Or can she?<\/p>\n
Fans feared the worst when Clark landed awkwardly following a 3-point attempt in Thursday’s preseason game between the Indiana Fever and the Dallas Wings. The showdown — billed as a meeting of the WNBA’s past four no.1 overall draft picks — could well have been a nightmare for Clark and the Fever when the superstar guard came up limping after the Wings’ Alanna Smith fouled her on the shot attempt.<\/p>\n
MORE:\u00a0Caitlin Clark\u2019s early dominance overshadowed by injury scare in Fever loss<\/a><\/p>\n Smith, the WNBA’s reigning co-Defensive Player of the Year, was assessed a Flagrant 1 on the play. Clark shot three free throws and made two of them before she sat the rest of the game.<\/p>\n Caitlin Clark trying to walk it off after being fouled on a 3-point attempt.<\/p>\n She appears to be ok, officials rule it a Flagrant-1 on Alanna Smith pic.twitter.com\/qXyMeRSmWV<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Scott Agness (@ScottAgness) May 1, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n Clark, who scored a game-high 21 points in 16 minutes, tried to play down the limp as she told reporters postgame that she felt “good.”<\/p>\n “Just landed on my kneecap really hard,” Clark said<\/a> after the Fever’s 95-80 loss.<\/p>\n Fever head coach Stephanie White revealed postgame that Clark was not going to play deep into the third quarter, which is when the incident occurred. Opting to play it safe a week before the 2026 regular season starts, White quickly removed Clark following the injury scare.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had planned for her to come out around that time anyway,\u201d White said. \u201cIt was just extra precaution, I think, getting her out in that moment, but the plan was for her to start the third quarter then get her out quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n Stephanie White could tell right away that Caitlin Clark’s third-quarter limp wasn’t going to be anything big.<\/p>\n “You can kind of see in her face. It was like, ‘Alright, she took one.'”<\/p>\n How Clark avoided an injury scare against Dallas:https:\/\/t.co\/tmzVtuZ8Os<\/a><\/p>\n