A year ago, Christie Sides gave Caitlin Clark a tight mark. The habits of hanging out and dancing? Yeah, Clark had to stick 0.5 seconds to do all that and make a decision, too. Well, everyone knew that the quick adjustment from college to the W wasn’t going to be exactly pretty for her. In just two games of her regular season, it was clear that Clark was playing with the pace of a college star. She could not make her decisions promptly, leading to defenses being able to read her offense. The result? She turned over the ball 10 times in her first game against the Sun. Sides, simply, wasn’t having it. As the season progressed, CC and Co. definitely got better, but not enough, as the Sun proved to be a thorn in their side again.

Now, let’s be fair — it’s not like the Fever were a hot mess last year. In fact, they had a historic run, making it to the playoffs for the first time since 2016. The problem? They weren’t exactly rubbing shoulders with the WNBA elite like the Liberty, Aces, or Sun — more like waving at them from a safe distance. Hence, came Stephanie White, who took the reins from Sides and bolstered the team even more to make sure the offense was facilitated in the best manner possible. Anyone would think, then, that the problems of not being “fast enough” must be solved now. Well, according to one analyst, not really. 

She said on her YouTube Channel, “I noticed about Caitlin and kind of about this entire Indiana Fever team that they, to me, were not playing at full speed, and I don’t even think Caitlin was playing at full speed and full intensity like we see her in regular season games. she has also been coming back from something that is going on with her quad but if you look at these numbers, even just the numbers show that she has improved.”

Yes, it is just preseason, but still, everyone is paranoid about the mistakes being repeated. Clark had herself admitted last year, saying, “Every movement just needs to happen a little bit faster”. And with the injury concerns that surfaced? The paranoia can get to an all-time high. Anyway, the same concerns around that could explain why White took a more cautious approach in the preseason. There are five returning players in Indiana’s roster, so with a new front office and several additions, White probably wanted to ease the team into the season as she gauged how they gelled on the court. Sure, starting with a fast-paced, high-octane offense sounds good on paper, but one thing goes wrong, and it could end up putting a dent in the team’s rhythm and confidence.

Anyway, De Mita still advised Fever to maximize their team’s potential, saying, “I do want to share some concerns that I do have for the Indiana Fever. They are not playing as fast as I was hoping for; they are not moving the ball as quickly as I was hoping for”.

Last season, they were attempting at exactly that. Under Sides, the pair of Mitchell and Clark were thriving as they combined for over 50+ points in one month and showed as one of the most promising backcourts in the WNBA. They complemented each other perfectly as Clark was setting up Mitchell for success to use her mid-range jump shot, and Mitchell found Clark on almost all fast breaks. Now they have more pieces to fit that puzzle, with Cunningham showing some promise in the preseason. And coming in, Fever not once doubted Indiana’s pace. She saw shining, absolutely blinding, slivers of hope in their 20-20 run, saying,“I think our players naturally play fast. When you look at what Indiana did a year ago, they were among the top teams in the league in pace and offense”. 

It is fair to say that White’s preseason approach was probably a part of her long-term strategy. We honestly do not have enough evidence to even doubt her. After all, she had a good stint with the Sun, was an assistant when the 2012 Fever won the championship, and led them back to the finals as the coach in 2015. So, as the season progresses, we can expect Indiana’s offense to become increasingly fluid and faster paced, especially as players grow more comfortable with one another. The new offensive patterns introduced by head coach Stephanie White will naturally require time, practice, and repetition to fully integrate.

“It’s exciting,” Bonner has told reporters. “It’s exciting because there’s so many rotations and combinations you can play with. … We all are just giving each other grace and trying to figure it out. But at the same time, we have a goal. We want to win.”

The hunger for that goal will be on full display as the Indiana Fever will open their 2025 campaign against the Chicago Sky on May 18. However, with the hunger, the players might have to deal with the frustration of the so-called rivalry as well. 

Angel Reese shuts off the reporter asking a Clark-related question

The Angel Reese-Caitlin Clark rivalry is one of the reasons why the WNBA is where it is right now. After that intense college final in which Reese did that now-famed ‘you can’t see me’ celebration while beating Clark’s Iowa in the final, the rivalry moved on to the WNBA. And Clark has had the upper hand so far.

With the majority of the WNBA fandom rallying behind Clark, Reese had made some controversial statements, to say the least. “I’ll take that bad guy role, and I’ll continue to take that on and be that for my teammates. And I know I’ll go down in history. I’ll look back in 20 years and be like, ‘Yeah, the reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person. It’s because of me, too.’ I want y’all to realize that,” Reese said last year.

This lit a fire among the Indiana fandom and the WNBA in general. Since then, fans have been biting their nails, waiting for the May 18 game of fever against the Sky. But that fire might be doused a little after Reese shut off a reporter who was asking about the situation with Caitlin Clark and her.

The reporter started, “Last year, you made a powerful statement saying the reason people are watching women’s basketball was not just because of one player, but because of you, too. A year later, do you feel like you’re getting—”

“Next question,” Reese responded, cutting the reporter’s question off.

It seems Reese is done talking. The Sky’s offseason has evolved to the next rebuilding stage, with Reese taking a more important role going into her second year. She has also been working on her outside shooting, which the Sky team as a whole lacked last year. The battle will continue on the court, with off-the-court talk seeming to be done from Reese’s side.