Without Caitlin Clark, what will the Indiana Fever look like?

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Experimentation has been a theme of the Indiana Fever’s first two weeks of the season. After returning only five players from last season’s team, coach Stephanie White has been toggling different lineups since the group came together for training camp in late April. In almost every one of their best scenarios, one constant has remained: Caitlin Clark.

But now, at least in the short term, Indiana will be forced to make adjustments without her.

Clark sat for only 20 minutes in Indiana’s first four regular-season games, and aside from sitting out one preseason game, she has never missed a game in her college or pro career. On Monday, the Fever announced that Clark will miss at least two weeks because of a left quadriceps strain. White said the injury is unrelated to the quad injury that kept Clark out of Indiana’s opening preseason game.

The ensuing few weeks will provide White with an opportunity for trial and error. Clark is expected to miss at least four games — two against the Washington Mystics and one each against the Chicago Sky and Connecticut Sun — and the Fever hope to benefit from the depth their front office brought in this winter.

“We have eight players who could start in this league,” White said in the preseason.

White, who is in her first year back with the Fever after spending the past two seasons coaching the Connecticut Sun, said on Tuesday that veteran guard Sydney Colson will start in Clark’s place when the Fever tip off against the Washington Mystics on Wednesday night. Although Colson has played only 24 total minutes in three games this season, White sees her as an “elite communicator” and trusts the 11-year veteran to get Indiana into its offense. Colson’s offensive responsibilities will pale in comparison to Clark’s, though her defensive acumen will be stabilizing.

NEWS: Caitlin Clark has suffered a quad strain and will miss at least two weeks, the Fever announced. pic.twitter.com/duXnQusGLd

— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) May 26, 2025

“We got a real opportunity to grow here, playing with different lead guards,” White said, “playing in different actions, seeing what all of our off-ball stuff can look like.”

White had already been testing different lineup combinations and substitution patterns in non-Clark minutes, hoping to find the right groupings by the All-Star break. Clark sat at the end of the first quarter in Indiana’s season-opener against the Sky and in their first of two early-season matchups with the Atlanta Dream. Colson, one of Indiana’s veteran acquisitions, spelled Clark and took over primary ballhandling duties.

Against the Dream last Thursday and the New York Liberty on Saturday, Clark sat for the first time at the beginning of the second quarter. In both instances, longtime Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell slid into a lead creator role.

Even with Colson starting in Clark’s place, Mitchell’s performance will dictate most of Indiana’s offensive success going forward. The two-time All-Star guard acknowledged that she will have to be more vocal without Clark on the court. She’ll have to do even more playmaking, too, reverting to her role in the pre-Clark era. (Mitchell has been with the Fever since 2018.)

Mitchell’s speed and downhill driving ability should allow Indiana to continue to push the tempo and break down defenses off the dribble. That’s already been the case in non-Clark minutes this year. Mitchell leads all guards in shots per game within five feet of the rim.

“The idea is that you keep the flow flowing, keep the rhythm going,” Mitchell said.

Yet some of Indiana’s methods for generating offense will change. Clark has assisted Aliyah Boston 19 times this season, tied for the most of any duo entering Tuesday’s games, according to PBPStats.com. Seven of those assists have come in the midrange with Clark’s passes to Boston on short-rolls already one of the most difficult actions to stop in the league.

In Clark’s absence, Boston’s post-up productivity will be more important. Boston shot 50 percent on post-up attempts last season, slightly down from her rookie campaign. The two-time All-Star center was a fulcrum of Indiana’s offense two seasons ago, and she’ll get a chance to showcase her back-to-the-basket game yet again. So far, returns have been positive, as Boston is averaging career-highs in points (18.5), rebounds (10.8) and field goal percentage (60.8 percent).

White said Boston might not get as many short-roll opportunities and Indiana might not take as many above-the-break 3-pointers without Clark. Instead, Indiana might use more drive-and-kick action and have Mitchell spray passes to the corners where DeWanna Bonner, Sophie Cunningham and Lexie Hull remain dangerous. Indiana has attempted just nine corner 3s this season, well below league average.

The Fever have offensive weapons, but even with Clark on the floor, they were still figuring out how to jell. Bonner started Indiana’s first two games before coming off the bench in its last two. She’s attempted only seven shots over her last three as White has gone from starting the six-time All-Star at the three, alongside Boston and Natasha Howard, to bringing her off the bench. She’ll likely also be more of a top-scoring option with Clark out.

“I think that’s the advantage of our depth,” White said. “We’re equipped. It’s a great opportunity for our team to find an identity. It’s a great opportunity for our team to play in a different way.”

Cunningham, an experienced 3-and-D wing, who signed with Indiana in the offseason, will take on more ballhandling opportunities. And it wouldn’t be surprising for White to use a five-player lineup of Mitchell-Hull-Cunningham-Boston and either Bonner or Howard in closing moments, considering their versatility. That optionality is another reminder of Indiana’s roster construction.

“I don’t know if in 15 years I’ve been on a team that had this much firepower throughout the whole roster,” Bonner said in training camp.

Defensively, Indiana has shown improvement this season. After finishing No. 11 in defensive rating last season, the Fever currently rank third, albeit in a small sample of games. Key to the jump is their focus after giveaways, limiting opponents’ points off turnover from 16.7 points last season to a league-low 10.5 this season. That shouldn’t change without Clark, though limiting live-ball turnovers will be another area of emphasis without her in the lineup

Indiana should still be favored in its upcoming four games. But matchups against the Dream and Liberty loom on June 10 and June 14, respectively.

Don’t expect the Fever to rush Clark back. White has been open about wanting to be patient regarding Clark’s health, dating back to the guard’s absence in the preseason. If anything, White sees the next few weeks as a chance to collect data that could help the Fever in the postseason.

“She’s gonna come back better,” White said of Clark. “And it’s gonna help us be better.”

 (Photo of Kelsey Mitchell: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)

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