Caitlin Clark fires warning to rivals as she returns back to practice court early

has fired a stern warning to her WNBA rivals ahead of the 2025 season, just weeks after her Indiana Fever side were dumped out of the 2024 playoffs.

It was a contrasting end to the season for Clark, with the 22-year-old taking home the Rookie of the Year award, even though the Fever suffered a round-one series defeat to the Connecticut Sun.

While Indiana had been absent from each of the last eight WNBA playoffs, hopes had been higher for the team with the league's best young talent.

But despite the season ending prematurely from a Fever point of view, Clark has already set her sights on the upcoming 2025 campaign.

The official Indiana Fever X account posted a video of the talented basketball player putting in the hard yards during a post-season training session.

Clark herself was speaking over the video, saying: "I feel like I'm just scratching the surface. I feel like there are just so many areas I want to improve in and continue to get in the gym and work on that every single day."

The dramatic video featured the familiar sight of Clark landing three-pointers and bamboozling the marker with her dribbling skills.

It comes after a watershed season for the WNBA. Viewing figures, ticket purchases and merchandise sales all skyrocketed during a year that saw the popularity of the league rise exponentially.

Many have attributed the increased attention surrounding the WNBA to Clark's impact, but even with the Iowa-born ace, the league could be facing an uphill battle.

Reports suggest , with claims the league is unlikely to turn a profit for years.

That's according to one executive who told the New York Post: "WNBA owes the NBA so much we won't see any windfall for years."

And any hopes of the league becoming financially viable rest on Clark not only staying fit, but also playing for a competitive team - something pointed out by ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith.

Commenting on his self-titled podcast, Smith said: "Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever now eliminated.

"Game 1 of the Aces-Liberty matchup on Sunday drew an average of 929,000 viewers. It's a good number for the WNBA on an NFL Sunday.

"However, that was down nearly 50% from last Sunday's Fever-Sun contest. By the way, not only was viewership down, but attendance was as well."

He concluded: "Do you want me to just say I told you so, or are you willing to say Stephen A. you did tell us? Really? Caitlin Clark is the golden goose."