Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark is scheduled to make her competitive debut for the U.S. women's national basketball team during a FIBA Women's World Cup 2026 qualifier in Puerto Rico next week.

Clark, the 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year,^[1][2] spoke to reporters following a Team USA training camp session at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, on December 13, 2025. The 23-year-old said she expected some rust after an extended injury layoff that limited her to 13 games during her second WNBA season.

"It'll probably take me a second to knock a little bit of the rust off," Clark said. "I'll probably be a little bit nervous, which I usually don't get nervous, but that probably comes from I haven't really played basketball in a while."

Clark detailed injuries including a groin strain and an ankle bone bruise during the 2025 WNBA season. Her most recent WNBA game was in July 2025. She added that she was excited about returning, stating, "I'm sure after the first minute of running around on the court, I'll be just fine."

Clark holds the NCAA Division I women's basketball career scoring record with 3,951 points, set during her time at the University of Iowa.^[3][4] She was not selected for the U.S. team at the 2024 Paris Olympics.^[5]

The upcoming qualifier is part of the qualification process for the 2026 FIBA Women's World Cup in Germany. Clark, the 2024 No. 1 WNBA draft pick, said her focus remains on preparation amid the long-term goals of the World Cup and 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Sources

1. WNBA. "Caitlin Clark named 2024 Kia WNBA Rookie of the Year." October 17, 2024. https://www.wnba.com/news/caitlin-clark-named-2024-kia-wnba-rookie-of-the-year
2. ESPN. "Caitlin Clark wins 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year award." October 17, 2024. https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/41788830/caitlin-clark-wins-wnba-rookie-year-kia-award-unanimous-vote
3. NCAA.com. "Caitlin Clark becomes NCAA all-time leading scorer in women's basketball." February 16, 2024. https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-women/article/2024-02-16/caitlin-clark-passes-pete-maravich-kelsey-plum-become-ncaa-all-time-leading-scorer
4. Iowa Hawkeyes (official). "Caitlin Clark NCAA All-Time Scoring Leader." February 15, 2024. https://hawkeyesports.com/news/2024/2/15/wbb-caitlin-clark-ncaa-all-time-scoring-leader
5. ESPN. "Caitlin Clark left off Team USA roster for Paris Olympics." June 5, 2024. https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/40268894/caitlin-clark-left-team-usa-paris-olympics-roster