For the first time in months, Caitlin Clark is back on the court without limits — and the relief is evident in both her words and her movement.
Clark returned to live basketball this week at USA Basketball’s Senior National Team training camp in Durham, North Carolina, marking her first organized competition since an injury-riddled 2025 season that forced her to the sidelines far longer than she ever anticipated.
“I’m at 100 percent,” Clark said on the opening day of camp. “Obviously, I need to knock off a little bit of rust and get my lungs back, but my body feels really good. I feel like I’m in a really good spot, my main goal is just staying that way.”
For a player whose career has largely been defined by durability and availability, simply being healthy again carries weight.
A Season That Tested Caitlin Clark for the First Time
Clark appeared in just 13 games during the 2025 WNBA season, the fewest of her basketball career. She averaged 16.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 8.8 assists in those appearances, numbers that reflected both her talent and the physical limitations she was managing.
She dealt with multiple injuries throughout the year, including a right groin issue, a left quad injury, and a left groin setback. What ultimately derailed her return attempt, however, was a severe left ankle injury suffered during a workout in Phoenix in early August, later diagnosed as a bone bruise.
“My ankle kind of didn’t allow me to really see where my groin was at,” Clark explained during her exit interview in October. “It was, I think, my second full-court workout back when we were in Phoenix, but I just went to make a move, and unfortunately, my ankle completely rolled all the way forward in probably one of the worst sprains I’ve dealt with.”
Clark hoped to return late in the season, but the timeline kept shifting. In early September, she was ruled out for the remainder of the year.
“I did everything I could to possibly try to play, but my body just wasn’t really letting me,” Clark said. “And then I continued to rehab and now feeling back at 100%. Honestly, it took probably longer than I expected. My body’s in a really good spot.”
The Contrast With Her Rookie Year
The abrupt stop stood in stark contrast to Clark’s first professional season.
As a rookie in 2024, Clark played 40 games, averaging 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 8.4 assists. She shot 41.7% from the field and 34.4% from three-point range, earning her first All-Star selection and the WNBA Rookie of the Year award.
Before last season, Clark had never missed a game due to injury — not at the University of Iowa and not during her rookie year with the Fever. The physical disruption of 2025 was unfamiliar territory, forcing her to learn patience in a way she never had to before.
When she did play last season, the injuries affected her efficiency and rhythm, even as she continued to facilitate and compete.
Great to see Caitlin Clark back on the court ☺️#USABWNT pic.twitter.com/F5xClk4paO
— WNBA (@WNBA) December 12, 2025
Watching Instead of Leading
Indiana adjusted without its franchise guard. Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston helped guide the Fever to a 24-20 record, their first winning season since 2015. The team made a surprising playoff run, knocking out the Atlanta Dream before pushing the eventual champion Las Vegas Aces to overtime in a decisive Game 5 of the semifinals.
Clark watched most of it from the sidelines — a role reversal that left a lasting impression.
She has said the experience reshaped her understanding of leadership, particularly when it comes to injured teammates. Being unable to contribute physically forced her to engage differently, to process the emotional weight of recovery, and to better understand what others endure when their bodies fail them.
That perspective, she said, may be the most lasting takeaway from the season.
Returning Where She Expected To
Clark had long believed her return to five-on-five basketball would come with Team USA. That prediction proved accurate.
She is one of 17 players participating in senior national team camp as preparations begin for the 2026 FIBA Women’s World Cup. Clark previously won gold medals with USA Basketball at the junior level and is now making her senior camp debut.
After nearly six months away from competitive play, she said the feeling of simply moving freely again mattered as much as anything else.
“I felt like I was moving really well,” Clark said. “So it was pretty satisfying.”
For now, there is no talk of timelines, minutes, or expectations — only health.
Caitlin Clark is back, her body finally cooperating again, her perspective reshaped, and her career moving forward after the first true interruption she has ever known.
