JUST AS THE Indiana Fever (18-15) were finding their groove coming out of the All-Star break, another curveball was thrown their way as their point guard depth took a hit with veteran Sydney Colson and midseason pickup Aari McDonald both going down with season-ending injuries.
Colson, who tore her ACL, and McDonald, who broke a bone in her right foot, have both been instrumental in ball handling and scoring for Indiana as of late while the team awaits the return of Caitlin Clark. The loss of McDonald may be the biggest blow for myriad reasons.
Drafted with the third overall pick in 2021, McDonald played the first two seasons of her career with the Atlanta Dream before being traded to the Los Angeles Sparks, where she suited up in 26 games in the 2024 season. After re-signing with the Sparks this offseason, she was cut from the final roster.
Indiana initially signed McDonald on June 2 with an emergency hardship exception for 11 days as Clark and Sophie Cunningham sat out due to injuries before being re-signed again on June 25 to a standard rest of season contract.
McDonald has been most pivotal to the Fever’s success during her recent stint, helping the team win six of their last nine games. She has averaged nearly 12 points per game since the All-Star break, including a career high of 27 points on 64-percent shooting in a 107-101 win over Phoenix on July 30.
Speaking before the team’s game against the Chicago Sky last weekend, head coach Stephanie White expressed confidence in her team’s ability to step up in light of recent season-ending injuries.
“[I’m] brokenhearted for them. They’re two really good people that you hate to see this happen to, and they’ve been an integral part of what we’ve been doing. … We’ve got players in that locker room who believe in one another, competitive as all get out, and we’ve got versatility that has to be on full display,” White says.
The injury bug didn’t slow them down in their contest against the Sky when they dismantled Chicago 92-70 before falling in the final seconds to the Dallas Wings on Tuesday night.
In their recent tribulation, they’ve relied on a steady dose of Kelsey Mitchell, who is no stranger to scoring in bunches throughout her career.
Since the break, Mitchell has averaged 19.9 points per game on 45-percent shooting from the field while leading the team in scoring in eight straight games from July 9 to July 27. She hasn’t slowed down since, scoring 34, 26, and 24 in three of the last four games.
While shouldering a portion of the offensive load, she’s also been one of the league leaders in 3-point percentage with 37.7 percent, including a current top spot in the WNBA in most made 3s.
White continues to be impressed by Mitchell’s ability to carry the team when they need her most.
“I think what I’ve learned the most is how much she embraces playing the role of being a primary scorer. We’ve had to lean heavily on her to do that, and she’s continued to step up to the challenge. When you put her in positions to use her instincts and be successful, she continues to rise to the occasion,” White says.
Mitchell’s recent foray into the point guard duties may be unfamiliar, but it also lends her a chance for improvement in other avenues.
“I haven’t played point guard since college, so that was different, but I think it brings out the vulnerable side of me,” Mitchell says. “The leadership in which I need to keep getting better at and keep growing at … seeing my assists go up is just because of these girls. We have an unbelievable chemistry when it comes to seeing and reading each other, so I think they make me look good.”
Outside of Mitchell at point, Indiana has also found steady contributions from Aliyah Boston, who has scored in double figures in every game but two in the last month, along with Sophie Cunningham, who is currently shooting third best in the league from distance with 44 percent.
Chloe Bibby, another of Indiana’s midseason signings, has stepped up as a rare find in the free agent pool after going undrafted in 2022 and playing overseas last year. With the Fever, Bibby has made the most of her minutes, putting up 5.2 points per game on 40-percent shooting in an average of 11 minutes per game.
As for Clark, a return date has not been set by the Fever. White recently spoke on her guard’s status, “No return to practice. She’s been able to get a little bit more in her full-court running with all of her body weight. It’s really building up from doing minimal to then building some endurance to do longer periods of time. She’s been able to do a little bit more on the court in terms of how she moves, but not into practice yet.”
Indiana has 11 games remaining on their regular season schedule, with six games against teams that are currently eligible for the WNBA playoffs. The Fever sit in sixth place in the playoff standings.
