Aces Coach Becky Hammon Makes Blunt Caitlin Clark Admission on Thursday Night

Even without Caitlin Clark, who remains sidelined with a groin injury, the Indiana Fever, in light of a three-game winning streak, have improved to 9-8 on the 2025 WNBA season.

On Thursday night, the Fever defeated Becky Hammon and the Las Vegas Aces 81-54, snapping a 16-game losing streak against them.

With Clark out for her ninth game of the year, Indiana’s other two All-Stars, Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell, took over. Boston finished with 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting, seven rebounds and two assists, while Mitchell added a team-high 25 points on 9-of-18 shooting, six assists and two steals.

Even with Boston and Mitchell playing at a high level, Clark’s absence may still force coaches to adjust their preparation for facing the Fever, and Hammon would agree.

Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky HammonDarren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Ahead of the Aces’ loss, Hammon spoke during a pregame press conference. When asked how her prep changes with Clark out, Hammon didn’t hesitate to respond.

“Yeah, it pretty much changed a lot,” Hammon said. “We prepared yesterday as if she was going to play. Then once we got word she was out, obviously, we’ll be doing a little bit more traditional stuff. Not that we’re not going to mix in some stuff here and there. Um, maybe on (Sydney Colson) or something like that, just to, you know, harass her a little bit.”

Hammon continued to share her praise for Clark.

“Um, but no, I mean, she’s somebody that requires, obviously, a lot of attention, a lot of attention to detail when she’s in the ball game,” Hammon added. “But it’s a scary team in the sense of, you know, Caitlin being out is somebody else’s opportunity to get minutes.”

The Fever will be back in action on Friday, hosting Kelsey Plum and the Los Angeles Sparks at 7:00 p.m. ET. At the time of this article, it is unclear whether Clark will be available to play.

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 4, 2025, where it first appeared.