Aari McDonald's contract length may reveal when Caitlin Clark is back for Fever

The Indiana Fever signed Aari McDonald to a hardship contract Monday, a move that will offer the embattled team a little relief while Caitlin Clark and Sophie Cunningham are injured (Sydney Colson, who hurt her leg during the team's recent game against the Sun, was not on the injury report for Tuesday's game against the Mystics). Hardship contracts are typically for 7 days; June 2 marked one week since Clark's injury was announced. If the math is mathing, it appears McDonald's contract could indicate Clark will be back on the court on Monday, June 9 — exactly two weeks after the initial announcement.

Let's break it down:

How long are WNBA hardship contracts good for?

First and foremost, this is a theory, but a fun one. It's important to note a few key elements: the Fever have not offered an updated timeline on Clark's progress, they have not specified the length of McDonald's contract, and Indiana Fever fans (the author included) are looking for any and every reason to believe Clark will be back on the court sooner than later.

The Fever notably did not sign McDonald to an end-of-season hardship contract that would have kept her on the team, so it's safe to assume her contract is temporary by nature. On Monday Bolavip, a Spanish-language sports website that has been publishing since 2010, reported that WNBA hardship contracts are typically seven days long.

If McDonald's contract is for a week, that could be an indication Clark will be ready to go ahead of the team's June 10 game against the Dream. While no one wants her to rush back to the court before she's ready, there's also no denying that her first game back is likely to be electric and a whole lot of fun.

Of course, just because a contract is initially set for one week doesn't mean it can't be renewed multiple times, and it's equally possible the Fever have signed McDonald for seven days hoping Clark will be ready, but also are prepared to resign McDonald for as long as they need to until she is back. In 2022 Crystal Dangerfield signed several hardship contracts with the Liberty before she ultimately signed a rest-of-season contract to remain on the team that year.

Aari McDonald could stay on the Fever for several weeks no matter what

Even if Clark returns to the court next week, there has been no update on how long Cunningham might be out of the game. Hardship contracts require that teams are missing at least two players to injury, but the Fever were already working with an 11-person roster in the first place and it's unclear if the team would be able to retain McDonald if only one player remained out.

Whatever happens, this is a huge opportunity for McDonald (the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 WNBA Draft and most recently averaged 8.7 points per game and 3.7 assists in 26 games for the Sparks in 2024) to introduce herself to Indiana Fever fans.