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WNBA Gets Bad News as Caitlin Clark’s Injury Absence Drags On originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Women’s basketball has undeniably skyrocketed in popularity over the past several years, and there are multiple stars of the game — both in college and in the WNBA — who have contributed to that meteoric rise.
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But Indiana Fever point guard Caitlin Clark continues to tower above them all in that regard.
WNBA ratings have proven as much since Clark went down against the New York Liberty with a quad injury on May 24. Initial projections had Clark missing at least two weeks. Those have proven correct, as Clark has sat out for the last 18 days and counting.
The result of her absence on the league’s ratings across the board has been drastic, according to a report from USA Today on Wednesday, June 11.
Indiana Fever point guard Caitlin Clark.Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images
“Nationally televised WNBA viewership is down 55% since [Clark’s] injury, according to Nielsen,” Jeff Zillgitt wrote. “Fever national TV games are down 53% since Clark’s injury — 1,810,000 average viewers before her injury and 847,000 viewers since her injury.”
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The Fever have suffered record-wise as well, going 2-3 without Clark in the lineup. Indiana is currently 4-5 on the season.
The team next plays on Saturday against the Liberty in Indianapolis. Clark’s status for that contest remains undetermined after team doctors reevaluated her injured quad last weekend.
Clark has posted 19 points, 9.3 assists, 6.0 rebounds and 1.3 steals in four appearances thus far in 2025. She won the WNBA Rookie of the Year award in 2024 after the Fever made her the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. Clark also earned one of five spots as a First-Team All-WNBA performer last season.
Related: Caitlin Clark Reacts to Big Announcement on Wednesday
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 12, 2025, where it first appeared.
