What's next for the Fever? Caitlin Clark, Indiana set up for success after season of unparalleled adversity

On Tuesday night in Las Vegas, the Indiana Fever's 2025 campaign finally came to an end with a 107-98 loss to the Las Vegas Aces in overtime of a deciding Game 5 of the WNBA semifinals. Improbably, almost illogically, this Fever team was only five minutes away from making it back to the WNBA Finals for the first time since 2015.

It's official: The Fever aren't just relevant again, they're legit contenders, and if they keep their core together, will be for years to come. 

None of this would have seemed surprising at the outset of the season -- the team had championship hopes and high external expectations. But nothing went according to plan for Indiana this summer.

DeWanna Bonner, the team's marquee offseason acquisition, was moved to the bench three games into the season, and a couple of weeks later began missing games due to "personal reasons." The team waived her on June 25. The six-time All-Star later said she "felt the fit did not work out." 

The injury bug ravaged the team's depth. On Aug. 7, hours after the trade deadline, guards Sydney Colson (ACL tear) and Aari MacDonald (right foot fracture) both incurred season-ending injuries. On Aug. 17, Sophie Cunningham tore her right MCL in a fluke in-game collision. A few days later, Chloe Bibby lost for the season with a left knee injury. 

But nothing hurt more than the ongoing injury woes of superstar point guard Caitlin Clark, who was expected to contend for MVP this year. Instead, she played only 13 of 44 regular-season games. It was an excruciating follow-up to her record-smashing rookie season. 

The adversity even continued in the playoffs, with star Kelsey Mitchell leaving Game 5 on Tuesday night with extreme cramps and Aliyah Boston fouling out before overtime. 

And yet, despite it all, the Fever would not stop fighting. The franchise had its first winning record since 2015. The team made the playoffs as the No. 6 seed, hosted its first playoff game since 2016 and won its first playoff game and playoff series since 2015.

The year could have broken the Fever. Instead, it seems it made them even stronger. 

"They kept getting back up. Collectively. And I think that oftentimes in sport, we see one that might, two that might, but they kept getting back up collectively," Fever coach Stephanie White told reporters after the season-ending loss. "There's no circumstance that we went through on or off the floor -- because, because we had some off the floor stuff too -- that they blinked, that they held their heads down, that they didn't just stand tall and face head on.

"They continued to pour into us as coaches. They continued to allow us to push them on days and moments when they could have very easily just given up. They loved on us, they loved on one another, and it just it makes it really special and it sucks that it's over."

If Clark can return healthy for 2026, the Fever's ceiling will even be higher than it seemed at the outset of the 2025 season. That's a terrifying notion for the rest of the WNBA.

Clark learned invaluable lessons about caring for her body

Clark didn't miss a single game in her four years at Iowa or her rookie year in the WNBA. She was an iron woman who never had to face the frustration of nagging injuries. So this season truly tested her in ways she had never been tested before.

"I've never been through anything like this, and I think that's probably why it's been so hard," Clark told Sue Bird on her podcast, "Bird's Eye View" earlier this summer.

Clark first got injured on May 24, just four games into the season, when she strained her left quad in a game against the New York Liberty. She returned on June 14 and played the next five games before again going back on the injury report with a left quad injury. On July 9 she returned once more, but only lasted four games until she suffered a right groin injury. Eventually, a left bone bruise during her recovery ended her season.

She told Bird that she didn't really understand how to listen to her body and deal with pain when her quad first started hurting, and the stop-and-start nature of her attempted return to play only made things worse.

"When I first was feeling pain, I didn't understand it," she continued. "I was like, 'Am I just tight? Am I just getting old? Do I need to hit a stretch? Do I need to get a little rub out? Do I need some icy hot? Like, what's going on here?"

Clark told Bird that as frustrating as this season has been, it has helped her learn how to recognize pain, properly rehab and stay both patient and locked in with her team and herself during the recovery process. She's grown as a professional, and will better be able to take care of herself in the future when she inevitably has to deal with injuries again. Plus, she has gained empathy for other players who have gone through similar -- or worse -- struggles.

"I think it has given me really good perspective on what a lot of my teammates ... have had to go through," she told Bird.

Everyone wanted Clark to be on the court and healthy this year. But she's gained invaluable insights from being on the sidelines.

"I know whether it's this year, whether it's next year, and even throughout my career, I'm going to be very thankful for this moment. I know this is going to help me understand my body better," she said.

Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell both grew on and off the court

When you look at the Fever's injury woes, it's easy to wonder how in the world they managed to still do so much winning during this year. But the truth is, they had two healthy All-Stars all season: Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell.

And while Boston and Mitchell both certainly would have rather Clark be with them on the court, her absence allowed them opportunities to expand their games and leadership styles. 

In her eighth season -- all in Indiana -- Mitchell averaged a career-high in points (20.2), PER (19.9), and win shares (5.6). She also set several Fever franchise records, including most games with 30+ points (11), most 20+ point games in a season (19) and single-season total points (890).

She even had to play point guard one game due to the depleted roster, something she hadn't done since her days at Ohio State. She said that being pushed out of her comfort zone that way "brings out the vulnerable side of me, the leadership in which I need to keep getting better and keep growing at."

During the semifinal series against the Aces, White praised Mitchell's "ability to accept expanded roles for us."

"She's always been a great scorer, and now we put the ball in her hands a little bit, and we use her as a facilitator as well as a scorer," White said. "You know, there are times where we have to put her on different match-ups on the defensive end so that she can get stops for us. So really, she doesn't have any rest anytime she's on the floor, and she's on the floor a lot. So I think you've seen her her leadership, she leads by example. I think you've seen her confidence. I think you've seen her ability to be a face of a franchise that's that she's been through the ebbs and flows. I'm happy for her."

Boston, meanwhile, has the most points (15) and assists (3.7) in her career this season, and her advanced stats show even more improvement in her third year in the league -- she has a career high in win shares (7.2), assists percentage (21.3%) and usage percentage (21.9%). 

Without Clark, she turned into more of a facilitator, an evolution that Clark praised.

"She's so strong, like people don't realize how strong she really is, and and then at the same time, like she's such a great facilitator for our team," Clark told Bird about Boston. "Especially a lot when I've been out this year, like, she's been initiating a lot of our offense. We feel very comfortable being able to do that, we trust her. She's a really high IQ Player. She's a good passer, she knows what to get us into, and understands her teammates really well."

White also noticed that Boston's communication and focus has improved during the team's trials and tribulations.

"Throughout the course of everything we've gone through this season, she's been great in every facet. Her communication on both ends of the floor is really good, her ability to connect people, and her ability to stay locked in is what stands out to me," White said.

"This has been my best year," Boston said on Tuesday night after the loss to the Aces. "I feel like I'm super proud of myself .. adjusting and adapting."

This year proved Indiana is marquee destination

Like most teams in the WNBA, the Fever very few players under contract heading into 2026. All of the veterans on their roster only signed contracts through 2025, anticipating the increase in the salary cap that will come when the new CBA is signed. The Fever will have to try to cut new deals with unrestricted free agents like Mitchell, Natasha Howard, Sophie Cunningham, Damiras Dantas and Lexie Hull if they want to keep a lot of this year's team together. So it's going to be a busy and stressful few months for the front office.

However, the Fever have one advantage that other teams do not: Two All-Stars on cost-controlled rookie contracts, in Boston and Clark.

That means the two best and most important pieces of their team are already signed, and they will come at a bargain, too. Life is pretty sweet in Indianapolis.

But this tough season also set the front office up for success in other ways, too, that should make free agency much easier than it has any right being. First off, the fan base proved its loyalty; even when Clark was not in the lineup, the fans in Indianapolis showed up to Gainbridge Fieldhouse in droves. Additionally, the franchise impressed fans and players alike with their fantastic hosting job during All-Star, and while Bonner's exit early season could have been a bad omen, the many hardship players that have been signed to the roster and thrived this season send a signal that the vibes are good behind the scenes in Fever land, too.

Plus, the way that White and the rest of the coaching staff kept the team together, positive, and competitive throughout all of the adversity that came the their way has to be enticing to players across the league -- and has to make it easier to re-sign their current players, if the front office wants to.

"Coach pulled out the best in us. She kept pushing us," Odyssey Sims, who joined the Fever on a hardship contract in August and ended up being a key member of their postseason run, told reporters. "Coach kept telling us we have more to give. We have more to give, so I'm super proud just to be a part of this group."

One thing is certain: The Fever are proud of what they accomplished in 2025, but are far from satisfied. 

"A championship is always on my mind," Boston said.  "We got a taste of it -- Game 5 semifinals -- and now we want the real thing. That's honestly going to be our mindset coming in for next year. I'm super excited going into this offseason. Time to put a lot of work in. I'm just getting ready to come back and win."