Clark injury looms over All-Star Weekend | Euros knockouts begin | Portland Fire reborn

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Clark injury clouds All-Star announcement

The WNBA announced a superstar lineup on Tuesday for this weekend’s 3-point contest — but are now left hoping that Caitlin Clark will be available after the Fever star appeared to injure herself with 40 seconds left in last night’s game.

• Earlier in the day, the WNBA announced that Clark would compete against reigning champion Allisha Gray, 2023 champ Sabrina Ionescu, Kelsey Plum, and Sonia Citron in a star-studded 3-point shootout.

Clark, however, had to leave Indiana’s 85-77 win over Connecticut after appearing to re-aggravate a lingering groin injury, casting doubt over her upcoming availability.

• Fever head coach Stephanie White said after the game that Clark “felt a little something in her groin," with further evaluation expected as Indiana travels to New York for their Wednesday game.

Big picture: Set to captain one of this weekend’s All-Star squads, Clark’s absence would be a massive blow to the WNBA during what is sure to be a weekend-long celebration of basketball in Indianapolis.

The WNBA’s big day of basketball

The WNBA closes out this week’s slate with a day-long basketball extravaganza, as 10 of the league’s 13 teams hope to head into All-Star Weekend on a high.

The Lynx are guaranteed to enter the break atop the league standings, but the middle of the pack could get reshuffled today.

• No. 11 Chicago vs. No. 5 Atlanta, 12 PM ET (League Pass): The Sky will be shorthanded without Angel Reese and Ariel Atkins, as the Dream try to bounce back from a two-game losing streak without Rhyne Howard.

• No. 1 Minnesota vs. No. 2 Phoenix, 1 PM ET (League Pass): The Lynx close out a grueling slate with a matchup against their closest challenger, as the Mercury look to go 2-0 against the league leaders.

• No. 4 Seattle vs. No. 8 Golden State, 3 PM ET (League Pass): The Valkyries have struggled to get a foothold after a hot start, carrying a two-game losing streak into Seattle.

• No. 3 New York vs. No. 6 Indiana, 7:30 PM ET (CBS Sports): The Liberty have been quietly stacking results since an earlier skid, as they host a hurting Indiana hoping that their superstar guard will be able to suit up.

• No. 12 Dallas vs. No. 9 Las Vegas, 8 PM ET (League Pass): The Aces are still on the outside of the playoff line looking in, but might see an opportunity against a young Dallas team still finding their flow.

The Euros knockout round begins

The 2025 Euro quarterfinal round begins today, as eight challengers sit three wins away from becoming champions of Europe.

• Norway vs. Italy, Wednesday at 3 PM ET (FOX): Group A’s winners take on the second-place team from Group B, as a wobbly yet talented Norway side takes on Italy, who can hit a counterpunch should they go down early.

• Sweden vs. England, Thursday at 3 PM ET (FOX): Sweden looked utterly dominant in their dismantling of Germany to win Group C, and their reward is a date with the reigning champions, who bounced back from an early loss to France.

• Spain vs. Switzerland, Friday at 3 PM ET (FOX): The 2023 World Champions have looked like the favorites to win it all by cruising through Group B. Now they’ll take on the tournament hosts.

• France vs. Germany, Saturday at 3 PM ET (FOX): France made it through Group D’s group of death unscathed, and have to feel like they have an advantage over a Germany team reeling from their 4-1 loss to Sweden.

Go Deeper: Who’s going to win the Euros? | The Late Sub

Portland WNBA team revives original name

Portland’s WNBA expansion franchise is bringing back the team’s original name, announcing on Tuesday that they will play under the Portland Fire moniker — the name held by the city’s original WNBA team from 2000 to 2002.

• Under the same ownership group as the NWSL’s Thorns, the Fire are set to hit the court in 2026, the same year as the Toronto Tempo.

• The team is still without a head coach or a general manager, but have surpassed over 10,000 season ticket deposits.

WNBA viewership hits another high

WNBA viewership hit another milestone this weekend, as the highly-anticipated first meeting of former No. 1 draft picks Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark drew an average of 2.1 million viewers on ABC on Sunday.

• Peaking at 2.5 million viewers, Indiana’s win over Dallas marked the fourth-most-viewed WNBA game in ABC’s history, up 69% from the network’s 2024 average.

Big picture: WNBA viewership has seen steady growth from the league’s breakout year in 2024, with numbers across all ESPN platforms up 7% YoY.

Marta weighs World Cup future amidst Copa campaign

39-year-old Brazil legend Marta has already come out of international retirement once, captaining her national team during the 2025 Copa America Femenina, but her World Cup future remains in doubt.

• Brazil will be hosting the event for the first time in the nation’s history in 2027, at which point the historic midfielder will be 42-years-old.

• “I don’t know whether I’ll still be playing in 2027 or whether I’ll be fit,” she told Brazilian outlet Globo this week.

• “I still have a very strong desire to be a mother, so I might wake up one day and decide to call my doctor to see if it’s still possible.”

Tune in: Brazil play Bolivia in their second Copa America group stage match today at 5 PM ET live on FS1.

Quote of the day

Washington Mystics rookie Kiki Iriafen
explaining how she almost quit basketball after USC’s Elite Eight loss. Iriafen will play in her first All-Star game this weekend.