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Caitlin Clark appeared to be back at the top of her game after missing most of the 2025 season due to injuries.
Clark played for Team USA in the FIBA Women’s World Cup qualifying tournament this month, and on Tuesday she was named MVP.
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Caitlin Clark of the United States prepares to make a free throw during the 2026 Women’s World Cup qualifier between Puerto Rico and the United States at Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot on March 12, 2026 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. (Alexa Alejandro/FIBA via Getty Images)
The Indiana Fever star, making her senior debut, averaged 11.6 points and 6.4 assists per game as the Americans went a perfect 5-0. The team won matches against Senegal, Puerto Rico, Italy, New Zealand and Spain to close out the tournament.
This is Clark’s second MVP title on the world stage. She received this honor while participating in the FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup in 2021.
Clark had a long journey to return to the basketball court as she only played 13 games for the Fever during the 2025 season. She averaged 16.5 points, 8.8 assists and 5 rebounds per game, but an injury just before the All-Star break threw her off course.
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Caitlin Clark (17) brings the ball up the court during a training camp for the United States women’s national basketball team, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, in Durham, North Carolina. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley, file)
The sniper suffered a strained groin and then a bone bruise in his ankle. The Fever closely monitored her recovery and ultimately ruled her out for the remainder of the regular season.
“I’ve always been a hard-working person. I feel like it’s definitely made me work harder,” the 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year said earlier this month, referring to her injury-related setbacks.
“But that’s probably also what’s a little bit bad is that I felt like I put in so much time and energy last season and obviously I only appeared in about 13 games.”
Despite her fears of being rusty, Clark scored 17 points in her first game against Senegal. She made four 3-pointers and that set the stage for how the rest of the tournament would unfold.
Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark (22) gestures to the crowd during the first half of a WNBA basketball game against the Connecticut Sun on Tuesday, July 15, 2025, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
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The FIBA Women’s World Cup will begin on September 4 and continue until September 13.
