{"id":50378,"date":"2025-07-31T16:02:08","date_gmt":"2025-07-31T16:02:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/50378\/"},"modified":"2025-07-31T16:02:08","modified_gmt":"2025-07-31T16:02:08","slug":"fever-dreams-why-indiana-is-still-a-threat-when-caitlin-clark-returns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/50378\/","title":{"rendered":"Fever Dreams: Why Indiana is Still a Threat When Caitlin Clark Returns"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Indiana Fever have
\nkept their heads
\nabove water<\/a> while missing Caitlin Clark. When Clark returns,
\nthe team could take a big step forward.<\/p>\n

After amassing a 20-20 record in Caitlin Clark\u2019s rookie year in
\n2024, the Indiana Fever were among the most active teams in the
\noffseason trying to build around their sensational star.<\/p>\n

They sit at 15-12 after a win against the Phoenix Mercury on
\nWednesday night, which doesn\u2019t seem like much of a
\nstep forward, but it\u2019s impressive considering Clark has now missed
\nover half the team\u2019s games this season.<\/p>\n

The team that was put together to play around Clark had to learn
\nhow to play without her and has done that well enough to keep the
\nFever firmly in the playoff hunt by going 7-7 in the games Clark
\nmissed.<\/p>\n

But to make any noise in the playoffs, the Fever will need Clark
\nat her best with a team that\u2019s comfortable playing around her.
\nClark is a singular talent, which makes her one of the most
\nexciting players in the league, but also someone who teammates need
\nto play with to get a feel for her game.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, the Fever\u2019s solid play without Clark seems like it
\ncan mostly be woven into a game plan that includes her as well. As
\nlong as she is healthy and gets some regular-season reps, the Fever
\ncould be a team nobody wants to play come playoff time.<\/p>\n

\nMore from opta analyst\n<\/p>\n

Mitchell
\nMomentum<\/p>\n

The Fever had a lot of roster turnover ahead of this season, but
\nit was all around top returning players Caitlin Clark, Kelsey
\nMitchell and Aliyah Boston.<\/p>\n

Boston has been the perfect third player in the offense. She
\ntakes advantage of mismatches and openings when they\u2019re given to
\nher, but doesn\u2019t need a ton of shots to be effective. She doesn\u2019t
\nget enough credit for being an elite passing big who always makes
\nthe right plays and is an integral part of punishing a leveraged
\ndefense.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s Mitchell who has been the go-to offensive player lately
\nwith Clark injured despite a quiet game against the Mercury. She
\nexploded for 35 points in the Fever\u2019s 93-78 win over the Chicago
\nSky on July 27, nailing seven 3-pointers and dishing out six
\nassists.<\/p>\n

The dynamic scoring will get the headlines, but it was
\nencouraging to see another game in which Mitchell utilized her
\nplaymaking. She doesn\u2019t have the vision of Clark, but she\u2019s good at
\nmaking the simple reads and has displayed excellent touch when
\nfinding her teammates.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

All her passes won\u2019t have this much flair, but it\u2019s nice to see
\nMitchell engaged with playmaking again. She averaged a career-low
\n1.8 assists last season as she took a backseat to Clark and Boston
\nin that regard. That number has crept up to 2.8 this year, as
\nMitchell has flashed her playmaking chops often when Clark hasn\u2019t
\nplayed.<\/p>\n

The Fever need her to tap into that playmaking when Clark
\nreturns as well. Mitchell is an electric shooter and scorer, but
\nshe needs to take advantage of passing lanes when defenses home in
\non Clark. The Fever have more firepower around their core this
\nyear, giving Mitchell more options when she drives. If she
\ncontinues to lean into playmaking a bit more when playing alongside
\nClark, it\u2019ll make the Fever\u2019s offense much more deadly.<\/p>\n

Mitchell\u2019s scoring outbursts lately with Clark sidelined might
\nmake fans assume that she\u2019s been much better as the primary option,
\nbut that hasn\u2019t really been the case. Though her scoring increases
\nwithout Clark, her efficiency drops \u2013 typical when a player has a
\nheavier offensive burden.<\/p>\n

\"Kelsey<\/p>\n

The malleability of Mitchell is crucial for the Fever with Clark
\ngoing in and out of the lineup. She\u2019s capable of being the top
\noption and keeping the offense afloat, but is an excellent
\ncomplement to Clark when the two play together due to her shooting
\nand dynamism.<\/p>\n

Mitchell\u2019s offensive
\nDRIP<\/a> (the offensive part of our projection of a player\u2019s
\ncontribution to a team\u2019s plus\/minus per 100 possessions)\u00a0is
\nfourth-best in the WNBA, while Clark is first.<\/p>\n

Simply put, the Fever have one of the best offensive duos in the
\nleague and, if Mitchell maintains her higher level of play overall
\nand good enough playmaking when Clark comes back, they\u2019ll be a
\nnightmare matchup for any team in the playoffs.<\/p>\n

Defensive
\nImprovement<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy to imagine the best version of the Fever as an
\noffensive juggernaut behind Clark and Mitchell. But the team needed
\nto tighten up defensively to make a real run in the postseason.<\/p>\n

Last year, the Fever allowed the second-most points per game in
\nthe WNBA. This year, they\u2019ve allowed the eighth-most points per
\ngame. They currently rank sixth in defensive TRACR.<\/a><\/p>\n

It might be tempting to think the team is adopting a more
\ndefensive-minded approach without Clark. However, that hasn\u2019t been
\nthe case.<\/p>\n

The Fever have allowed slightly fewer points per game with Clark
\nout of the lineup (81.5 in games with Clark and 80.9 in games
\nwithout her), but some of that is because they\u2019re playing at a
\nslower pace. The team is actually holding opponents to a much
\nbetter field goal percentage with Clark in the lineup. Teams shoot
\n40.9% against the Fever in games Clark has played compared to 45.7%
\nin games she hasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Clark gets compared to Stephen Curry a lot, but it\u2019s usually
\nabout their offensive games. It\u2019s fair to compare them on defense,
\ntoo, where both players manage to be better than popular opinion
\ndespite shouldering huge offensive burdens.<\/p>\n

While Clark may not be a difference maker on the defensive side
\nof the ball, she\u2019s not a liability either. She rates among the best
\nFever defenders by defensive DRIP.<\/p>\n

\"Fever
\nMinimum 100 minutes
\nplayed<\/p>\n

There shouldn\u2019t be much concern about a steep defensive drop-off
\nwhen Clark returns. The Fever\u2019s strength defensively will continue
\nto be Boston\u2019s versatility inside, solid play on the wings and a
\ncohesive unit that\u2019s greater than the sum of its parts.<\/p>\n

There will still be a feeling-out process when Clark returns,
\nwhich still seems to be a few weeks away. With all the new players
\non the roster this year, it\u2019s imperative that Clark gets in a
\nhealthy stretch of several games in a row so the team can be fully
\nactualized in the playoffs.<\/p>\n

But if that does happen, the Fever still have the potential to
\nbe a real threat. The team came into the season with a lot of hype
\nand that\u2019s subsided somewhat due to Clark\u2019s injuries.<\/p>\n

But their play without her has shown this roster is very good
\nwith a healthy Clark and should complement her well when she gets
\nup and running again.<\/p>\n

For more
\ncoverage, follow along on social media on\u00a0Instagram<\/a>,\u00a0Bluesky<\/a>,\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0X<\/a>.<\/p>\n