Reports have circled that Judd's preparation has been hindered by a virus, although Blues coach Brett Ratten has given an assurance he will line up at the weekend.
And Clark said the Lions would plan for match on the basis that the Brownlow Medallist would be taking the field.
''Even 50 per cent he's still one of the best players in the competition so we're going to have to be mindful of him,'' Clark said.
''He's their captain and one of their best players, if not the best, so we'll be preparing as if he's going to play.''
While Carlton has been installed as red-hot favourites for the contest, Clark pointed to the Lions' strong record against the Blues and said they could travel to Melbourne with plenty of confidence.
''It's going to be a tough game because Carlton is a good side,'' he said.
''We're just looking forward to the opportunity of going to Melbourne and playing in front of a big crowd and taking it up to them.''
The 21-year-old said last year's round 21 fadeout against Carlton, in which the Lions coughed up a 32-point three-quarter time lead, would not be used as motivation this time around.
But after the Lions escaped with a gritty nine-point win last week against West Coast, he said they would gain confidence from hanging on in a tight fourth quarter.
It was something the team and coach Michael Voss had addressed in the off-season.
''We're confident we can run out games, we've done that over the pre-season and we're confident in our training that we've done over summer that we can run out games.''
And it's something the 198cm giant has more confidence doing himself now after a solid pre-season following minor knee surgery.
In a young career Clark has been dogged by a range of injuries but managed to play 12 straight matches last season and said he was hoping to build on that in this campaign.
He started in fine fashion against the Eagles, notching a career-high 18 possessions.
Clark has made his name as a third forward option behind captain Jonathan Brown and Daniel Bradshaw, but has been moved all over the ground in the pre-season and the opening round.
However he scoffed at suggestions he could develop into the next Matthew Richardson.
''I think I play my best footy up forward, but I enjoy going down back and I've even played on the wing the last few weeks," he said.
"It has been good to get around the ground and get a bit of a run."
''If I can be half as good as him (Richardson) I'll be happy. He's a great player – I ended up playing on him a few weeks ago and he's a freak.''
