Earlier this season, the Indiana Fever’s roster underwent significant changes. While welcoming standout rookies, they also added impressive veterans, including Temi Fagbenle. The 2017 rookie made a switch from the Minnesota Lynx to the Fever after a four-year break from the WNBA. However, the shift hasn’t been all in her favor.

The 35th overall pick in the 2017 draft has faced numerous challenges with the Fever. Since signing a training camp contract, Fagbenle has been plagued by one injury after another. On September 4th, Chloe Peterson announced on her official X account that the Fever’s 6’4″ forward would miss the upcoming game versus the Los Angeles Sparks because of a right shoulder injury.

For Fagbenle, this is especially frustrating as it marks the third occasion she’s been sidelined this season. She first endured a foot injury on May 28th, causing her to miss the following month’s matchups. She returned on June 27th against the Seattle Storm, but after just three games, she was sidelined again, this time with a thumb injury.

Her health issues have caused her to miss the remainder of July and two matchups in August. Now, the Indiana Fever may once again bear the impact. Over the last two games, Caitlin Clark and the team had a clean injury report, with the entire roster ready to compete.

But on Tuesday, this streak ended with Fagbenle back on rest. This will be the 18th game she has missed this season — about half of the Fever’s schedule — averaging 3.8 points, 2.5 rebounds, 0.6 assists. Regardless, the team will look to not let the absence falter the streak they have been on.

Despite Temi Fagbenle’s setback, the Fever’s playoff hopes not far off

According to the power rankings released earlier today by the WNBA, Clark and her team are in 6th place. At the beginning of the season, the Fever was 1-8, but over the last 24 games, they improved to 16-8 and are now third in offensive rating — thanks to rookie Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell, who continue to top the scoring board for the team.

Yet, the remarkable play wasn’t enough to secure a top 5 spot for the team. This may be due to the Fever’s underperformance earlier this season. For week 10, the top position is held by the New York Liberty, followed by the Connecticut Sun, Minnesota Lynx, Las Vegas Aces, and Seattle Storm.

Nonetheless, as arguably the best team since Olympic break, Fever has won all but one of their past 7 games. The team also reached its first .500 in 8 years after defeating Dallas Wings to start the month. With a 17-16 record, positioned 6th, top 5 teams already making the playoffs, and two teams below trailing by 1 and 6 wins respectively, Fever is closest to the postseason run since the 2016 campaign.

Will they secure a historic win this season? Stay tuned to find out!