Caitlin Clark Reveals Feeling ‘Butterflies’ Ahead of Team USA Debut After Injury Recovery

Caitlin Clark’s return from injury will come on a unique stage.

The Indiana Fever star, who has been sidelined since July, will make her debut for Team USA this week in Puerto Rico. She said Monday that she has “butterflies” ahead of her return.

“I haven’t played basketball in eight months,” Clark said, per ESPN’s Kendra Andrews. “So getting to do it at this level for my first time back, there’s no better way to get tossed into the fire… I know the day of the game I’m going to be hyped up. Probably a little anxious, but in a good way.”

After an outstanding first WNBA season that ended with her winning Rookie of the Year, Clark dealt with groin and ankle injuries throughout the 2025 campaign and played just 13 games, most recently on July 15.

According to the Associated Press, Clark has been working with the Fever medical team and player development staff in recent months as she ramped back up to her return.

“I’ve always been a person that’s going to just rely on my work. I feel like it’s certainly made me work harder,” Clark said of the injuries. “But that’s also probably the part that kind of stunk about it is I felt like I put in so much time and so much energy going into last season and then, obviously, only appeared in about 13 games.”

Clark was, somewhat surprisingly, left off the 2024 Olympic roster in Paris, but she’ll get the chance to represent her country this week before likely doing it again at the 2028 Olympics.

Team USA will play five FIBA World Cup qualifier games in Puerto Rico this week and next, starting with a matchup against Senegal on Wednesday. The FIBA World Cup will take place in Berlin, Germany, in September.