When the 2025 WNBA season tipped off, the Indiana Fever looked like a playoff lock.
Armed with a high-octane offense led by Caitlin Clark, balanced by defensive stalwart DeWanna Bonner, and supported by a talented young core, the expectations were sky-high. But six games in, Indiana is 2-4 and reeling, as Clark‘s injury has disrupted the entire framework of the team.
What began as a simple lineup tweak by head coach Stephanie White, plugging in veteran Sydney Colson at point guard and shifting Sophie Cunningham into a ball-handling role, has quickly turned into a larger identity crisis.
The Fever‘s attempt to stay competitive without their floor general has yielded two straight losses, with growing signs of disorganization and doubt.
The Fever keep falling short
Entering Tuesday’s home matchup against a struggling Connecticut Sun squad, the Fever were actually favored. On paper, it seemed like the perfect get-right opportunity.
But while the game showed signs of chemistry and offensive cohesion, with Indiana notching 20 assists on 29 made field goals-execution in key moments again betrayed them. The result was a narrow 85-83 loss to a team that had dropped five straight.
The issues were mental and structural, as turnovers, in particular, proved fatal. The Fever coughed the ball up 15 times, surrendering 24 points off those mistakes alone.
“The live ball, the unforced ones… there was so much uncertainty… other players are playing with the ball in their hands trying to get us into offense. A part of that is experience and not being in that role before,” White said postgame.
With Clark sidelined due to a left quad injury, the team’s offensive blueprint has fallen into flux. Kelsey Mitchell, long known more as a scorer than a facilitator, was thrust into an initiator role and struggled. She finished with just two assists, three turnovers, and a rough 4-for-15 shooting night, including 0-for-4 from three-point range.
“A little bit of hesitancy, coming to the ball, getting away from the ball… we were down another point guard, and lots of different players are playing out of position, so to speak,” White added.
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