Caitlin Clark sidelined vs the Sparks as she recovers from back injury

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Caitlin Clark will miss Saturday's game against the Los Angeles Sparks while she recovers from a back injury she suffered against Phoenix on Wednesday.

Indiana coach Stephanie White said Friday morning that Clark wouldn't play. Indiana doesn’t play again after Saturday until visiting the Las Vegas Aces on July 5.

“She's OK. She's going to be out on Saturday. She's doing all right,” White said. “Obviously, it's a good time as we have all week next week. Take this opportunity to get her treatment, get her healthy and get her back on the floor and see what happens.”

Clark only played in 13 games last season because of a variety of injuries. She’s missed one game this season because of her back. Clark is tied for fourth in the league with 21.2 points a game. She had 19 points in 20 minutes against Phoenix.

“Long-term health and wellness is the most important thing," White said. “I think we want her to be healthy physically, mentally, emotionally. When you've gone through injury and the traumatic aspect of injury that she had last year, it's ups and downs physically, mentally and emotionally. Making sure that she's 100% ready to go is the most important thing.”

Clark was also hit in the throat Wednesday by Phoenix's Alyssa Thomas. While no foul was called, the Mercury forward was suspended by the league for a game on Thursday for that play.

Clark is currently second in All-Star fan voting that was released Wednesday behind teammate Aliyah Boston. The All-Star Game is July 25 in Chicago.

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball