Caitlin Clark's return date from injury is crystal clear for Fever fans

Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark is sidelined for the first time in her basketball career. After not missing a single game in her entire stint at Iowa or in her rookie year with the Indiana Fever, Clark will sit out at least two weeks with a left quad strain.

That two-week window isn't a definitive mark for her return to action. In fact, Clark is simply being re-evaluated on June 9. The door is open for her to miss even more time after June 9 if her recovery timeline is not going as planned.

There are four games between Clark's initial injury diagnosis and her re-evaluation date. Missing a handful of games is manageable for the Fever but anything more could have a massive negative impact on the team's title chances.

While nothing is confirmed and we won't truly know until Clark gets re-evaluated, there is one game on the calendar that lines up perfectly with Clark's timeline. Barring any unforeseen setbacks, Clark seems destined to return on June 14 against the New York Liberty.

Why Caitlin Clark feels destined to return to the Fever against the Liberty:

The Fever play the day after Clark's re-evaluation on June 10 against the Atlanta Dream. While theoretically that could be the return date if all goes well at the two-week check-in, it seems far more likely Clark would return on June 14.

Why rush Clark back to action if she can miss just one more game and rest up for four more days? Plus, the Fever are playing the Dream on the road on June 10. It's a far better proposition to give her those extra days of rest so she can return to action at home against the Liberty.

While the Dream are a solid team, Indiana can handle Atlanta without Clark in the lineup. The Fever aren't guaranteed to win, of course, but beating Atlanta is much more doable than beating New York without Clark.

Indiana also plays the Connecticut Sun at home on June 17. This return would give Clark a two-game homestand split across three days that would keep her from overdoing it. Following the two-game homestand is a West Coast swing. Ideally, Clark could get some minutes under her belt before having to endure the long West Coast road trip.

Plus, it's nice getting to return against one of the best teams in the league in a marquee matchup before getting a much easier game against the Sun at home.

Of course, this is all assuming her timeline isn't more serious than is being let on. But based on the overall muted reaction to her injury by the team, it doesn't appear to be overly serious. Perhaps Indiana is just being cautious not to risk further injury early in the season.

Nothing is confirmed and fans will get much more clarity on June 9 when she is re-evaluated. However, based on the construction of the schedule, June 14 against the Liberty seems like the most likely return date.