Because of a lingering groin strain, Caitlin Clark was unable to play for the Indiana Fever in Tuesday night’s WNBA Commissioner’s Cup championship against the Minnesota Lynx.

It is the her third straight game Clark as missed for the Indiana Fever.

The league’s in-season tournament final does not count toward the regular-season standings.

Clark, the first overall pick in the 2024 draft and one of the two captains selected for the WNBA All-Star Game later this month, never missed a game in college at Iowa or with the Fever as a rookie until a strained quadriceps earlier this season kept her out for five games.

The game against the league-leading Lynx was another high-profile matchup Clark’s absence put a bit of a damper on. She missed Indiana’s game on Friday at Dallas that would’ve pitted her against Wings rookie Paige Bueckers and featured the top picks of the last two drafts.

CHAMPS LIMP HOME

The New York Liberty return home after a disappointing trip that saw them drop three of their four games.

Help is on the way for the defending WNBA champions, though, as Leonie Fiebich will return from playing in the EuroBasket tournament for Germany. That will give New York back one of its two missing starters. Jonquel Jones is still recovering from a sprained ankle and is out for a few more weeks.

The team has really missed the two starters as its defense has struggled lately, giving up at least 89 points in three of the four road contests — including all three defeats.

ALL-STAR STARTERS

The WNBA All-Star starters were announced this week led by captains Clark and Napheesa Collier of the Minnesota Lynx. The pair will draft their teams next week after the reserves are revealed this weekend.

Clark, by virtue of receiving the most fan votes, will have the first pick.

Other starters: Nneka Ogwumike, A’ja Wilson, Breanna Stewart, Aliyah Boston and Satou Sabally in the front court. Sabrina Ionescu, Allisha Gray and rookie Paige Bueckers got the nod in the backcourt for tje July 19 game in Indianapolis.

Starters were selected without regard to conference affiliation. Fan voting accounted for 50%; player and media votes each accounted for 25%.