Carolyn Peck: Indiana Fever are 'more dangerous' without Caitlin Clark

Caitlin Clark has missed the Indiana Fever’s last four games due to a groin injury. However, the Fever haven’t let Clark’s absence slow them down. The Fever are on a three-game win streak, and recently added to their momentum by defeating the Minnesota Lynx 74-59 in the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup Championship.

While some analysts are excited to see how much further the Fever will improve when Clark returns, others don’t believe the team’s recent success without Clark is a coincidence. On Friday, ESPN analyst Carolyn Peck claimed the Fever are “more dangerous” without Clark on the court.

“Indiana is even more dangerous when Caitlin Clark doesn’t play,” Peck said. “Because she’s a ball-dominant guard. The ball is in her hands a lot, so you know what you need to try to take away. But when you look at Indiana now, they’ve got so many weapons.

“… When you have a point guard like Kelsey Mitchell, and Aari McDonald making plays on the perimeter, and a post like Aliyah Boston, I’m gonna tell you: Indiana, they are a threat. And it’s specifically on the defensive end. Stephanie [White’ is so pleased with the intensity that they’re bringing defensively with their length, their switches. They’ve wreaked havoc on their last two opponents.”

Despite the Fever’s recent success, the team is 5-4 when Clark is healthy this season and 5-4 when she’s unavailable. Thus, there’s been no change in the win-loss record with Caitlin Clark sidelined due to injury.

This reality can be interpreted in two ways: The Fever are just as good without Clark on the court, or the Fever aren’t better off without Clark. Evidently, Peck belongs to the former camp.

In fairness, Clark has struggled to find a rhythm this season due to her injuries. The 2024 WNBA All-Star’s efficiency is particularly suffering. Clark is only shooting 39.7% from the field and 29.5% from beyond the arc this season, compared to her 41.7% and 34.4% splits last season.

Nonetheless, the former Iowa standout is still averaging 18.2 points, 5.0 rebounds and 8.9 assists per game this season. With that said, Peck isn’t the only one who isn’t sold on Clark’s talents.

Earlier this week, Caitlin Clark’s fellow WNBA players voted her as just the ninth-best guard in the league. The WNBA All-Star votes are comprised of three groups: fans, media and current players.

Although Clark didn’t receive the utmost respect from other WNBA players, she was No. 1 in the fan vote and No. 3 in the media vote. In turn, she will be a captain in the All-Star Game.