Caitlin Clark returns from injury, sparks Fever preseason win over Liberty

Caitlin Clark’s return was never just about one preseason game. It was a measure of whether the WNBA can turn one star’s comeback into something bigger, with the Indiana Fever using her first action in nine months to open 2026 with a 109-91 win over the New York Liberty at Barclays Center.

Clark wasted little time making the moment count. Introduced to a warm ovation in the starting lineup, she scored the first basket of the game and later buried a deep step-back 3-pointer that briefly shifted the arena’s attention squarely to her. In just under 17 minutes, Clark finished with seven points, four assists and three rebounds, a short but pointed reminder of how much gravity she brings whenever she is on the floor.

The game carried more weight than a typical preseason opener because of what Clark had missed. Injuries limited her to 13 games in her second WNBA season, and she sat out the 2025 All-Star Game after suffering a season-ending right groin injury just before the break. She returned to training camp on April 19, then said after the game that preseason minutes still had to be treated seriously. “This isn’t a real game, I understand that, but that’s how we treat it, like a real game,” Clark said.

The Fever still managed a convincing result despite playing without Aliyah Boston, Lexie Hull, Ty Harris and Damiris Dantas. That absence list made the win less about a single box score and more about Indiana’s effort to build chemistry around a healthier core before the regular season begins. Fever coach Stephanie White said Clark had been playing with more joy during camp, a notable shift after a rehab process Clark described as frustrating and isolating.

New York entered the night with its own stakes. The Liberty’s preseason opener at home came after an offseason that included the addition of Satou Sabally, the re-signing of Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and Sabrina Ionescu to multi-year contracts, and the hiring of Chris DeMarco as head coach. Liberty game notes also pointed to the strength of that core, noting that Stewart, Jones and Ionescu were the first Liberty trio to earn All-WNBA Team honors in the same season in 2024 and that New York had gone 70-16 when they started together since 2023.

For the Fever, the return was a symbolic reset. The team’s official game pages were already built around Clark’s comeback, with highlights labeled for her first points and her made 3-pointer. For the league, the larger question remains whether one healthy star can lift more than one ticketing cycle, one broadcast window and one headline. Saturday offered an encouraging first answer.