DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Caitlin Clark had to remind herself to smile, have fun and not be so self-critical.
The opening day of USA Basketball camp Friday was her first time playing competitively in nearly five months after the Indiana Fever All-Star missed most of the WNBA season with a variety of injuries.
“I was a little nervous. I haven't been out here in a while. It's certainly fun to lace them up and be in a competitive practice," Clark said. "Obviously it's a lot different. I've been working out and playing pickup, but to be in an environment like this (is different). "I need to knock off a little bit of rust. My body feels really good. I feel like I'm in a good spot.”
Clark said she gained a greater appreciation for basketball after only being able to play in 13 games this past season.
“My year was really challenging. I missed being on the court and playing,” she said. 'I would have taken 10 bad games in a row just to be out there playing, that’s how much I love it. For me to be here and feel like I’m playing well and being healthy, that makes me smile more than anything."
Clark said she was back to 100% and showed flashes of her exciting play that has brought millions of new fans to women's basketball over the past few years since her time at Iowa. She hit a few deep 3-pointers on Duke's practice court and threw some beautiful passes that led to easy baskets for her teammates.
She also seemed to get on herself a few times for missing shots that she feels she normally hits.
“I was thinking about it last night, just smile and have fun,” Clark said. “You take for granted getting to play basketball. You always say you don’t want to, but then when you get hurt you realize you did.”
This was Clark’s first time playing with the senior national team. The 23-year-old had been invited to camps when she was in college, but the timing didn’t work out for her to attend.
“To be on a senior national team in camp is a dream come true,” she said. “It’s a whole other thing to make a team. It’s certainly an honor to be here.”
Clark left an impression on U.S. coach Kara Lawson.
“She’s a terrific player, really locked in and focused,” Lawson said. “I thought she looked good on both ends. And I thought that she hadn’t missed a beat.”
Clark is one of about a dozen first-timers at the camp, including Paige Bueckers and Angel Reese.
“We know each other a little bit, play against each other and played with each other on certain teams in the past, even in the WNBA,” Clark said. “At the same time, it's competitive. You all want to win, you’re all fighting for a spot.”
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
Caitlin Clark speaks to the media after a training camp for the U.S women's national basketball team, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, in Durham, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)
Caitlin Clark (17) looks on during a training camp for the U.S women's national basketball team, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, in Durham, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)
Caitlin Clark (17) takes part in drills during a training camp for the U.S women's national basketball team, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, in Durham, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)
SURIN, Thailand (AP) — Fighting raged Saturday morning along the border of Thailand and Cambodia, even after U.S. President Donald Trump, acting as a mediator, declared that he had won agreement from both countries for a ceasefire.
Thai officials have said they did not agree to a ceasefire, and Cambodia has not commented on Trump’s claim. Its defense ministry instead said Thai jets carried out airstrikes Saturday morning. Cambodian media reported Trump’s claim without elaborating.
Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow said Saturday that some of Trump's remarks didn't “reflect an accurate understanding of the situation.”
“We regret and we're disappointed that some of the points made by President Trump have bearing upon the feeling of the Thai people, Thailand, because we consider ourselves — we are proud, in fact — to be the oldest treaty ally of the United States in the region," he said.
The latest large-scale fighting was set off by a skirmish on Dec. 7 that wounded two Thai soldiers and derailed a ceasefire promoted by Trump that ended five days of earlier combat in July over longstanding territorial disputes.
The July ceasefire was brokered by Malaysia and pushed through by pressure from Trump, who threatened to withhold trade privileges unless Thailand and Cambodia agreed. It was formalized in more detail in October at a regional meeting in Malaysia that Trump attended.
About two dozen people have officially been reported killed in this past week’s fighting, while hundreds of thousands have been displaced on both sides of the border.
The Thai military acknowledges 11 of its troops have been killed, while estimating there have been 165 fatalities among Cambodian soldiers. Cambodia has not announced military casualties, but has said at least 11 civilians have been killed and 76 wounded.
Trump on Friday, after speaking to Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, had announced an agreement to restart the ceasefire.
“They have agreed to CEASE all shooting effective this evening, and go back to the original Peace Accord made with me, and them, with the help of the Great Prime Minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim,” Trump said in his Truth Social post.
Trump’s claim came after midnight in Bangkok. Thai Prime Minister Anutin had after his call with Trump said he had explained Thailand’s reasons for fighting and said peace would depend on Cambodia ceasing its attacks first. The Thai foreign ministry later explicitly disputed Trump’s claim that a ceasefire had been reached. Anutin's busy day on Friday including dissolving Parliament so new elections could be held early next year.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, in comments posted early Saturday morning, also made no mention of a ceasefire.
He said he held phone conversations on Friday night with Trump, and a night earlier with Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, and thanked both “for their continuous efforts to achieve a long-lasting peace between Cambodia and Thailand.”
“Cambodia is ready to cooperate in any way that is needed,' Hun Manet wrote.
Thailand has been carrying out airstrikes on what it says are strictly military targets, while Cambodia has been firing thousands of medium-range BM-21 rockets that have caused havoc but relatively few casualties.
BM-21 rocket launchers can fire up to 40 rockets at a time with a range of 30-40 kilometers (19-25 miles). These rockets cannot be precisely targeted and have landed largely in areas from where most people have already been evacuated.
However, the Thai army announced Saturday that BM-21 rockets had hit a civilian area in Sisaket province, seriously injuring two civilians who had heard warning sirens and had been running toward a bunker for safety.
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Peck reported from Bangkok. Sopheng Cheang in Serei Saophoan, Cambodia, and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed to this report.
An evacuee tastes soup as she takes refuge in Banteay Menchey provincial town, Cambodia, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, after fleeing from home following fighting between Thailand and Cambodia. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Evacuees cook food as they take refuge in Banteay Menchey provincial town, Cambodia, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, after fleeing homes following fighting between Thailand and Cambodia. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Children raise their hands while receiving donation from charity as they take refuge in Banteay Menchey provincial town, Cambodia, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, after fleeing homes following fighting between Thailand and Cambodia. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Evacuees wait to receive donation from local charity as they take refuge in Banteay Menchey provincial town, Cambodia, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, after fleeing homes following fighting between Thailand and Cambodia. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Village security volunteers and resident run into shelter while the blasts sounded too close in Buriram province, Thailand, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, following renewed border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
