Indiana Fever 2024

[Wingy]

The step up in weight class is obvious.

What’s up with Boston? Looks extremely ordinary. Over rated?
.

Nah, absolutely not. She has elite footwork and touch. She's very good and has a high ceiling for growth.

I wouldn't let that game be an indication of anything really. The Sun are a veteran team with tough defenders. They're no joke. The Fever are a bunch of kids. It's gonna happen quite a bit this season lol

Yeah, you pick that up from the commentators re: the Sun. I honestly didn't remember her name, but remembered reading about Thomas w/the 3-way MVP voting results. Knee jerk upon viewing...the W equivalent of Ben Simmons had he stayed healthy and fulfilled his potential (even a rough looking shot due to her shoulder).

I'll trust Boston has the elite traits you call out, but TBD if she will effectively use them? To be fair, she's young too, only 2nd year and I think all the unrealistic expectations for Clark also spill over to Boston when you put the two #1s together.

Overall, I wish the Fever would've stopped trying to make so many awful lofted post entry pass attempts from the middle of the court. So many turnovers off that. That's crap a h.s. coach would ream you out for, so bummed to see that so prominent at this level.

Seems like the refs call more travels in the W than a whole NBA season. Though insanely lame on them for whistling Clark for 2 Q1, soft, ticky tack fouls. C'mon.

Watched a bit of the next game, and it's a good reminder that the Fever were one of the worst teams in the league last year and got CC for a reason. The talent gap really stands out watching them and the champ Aces b2b.

Side note: A lot of my posts/comments will be in the form of a question since I've never followed in any detail beyond the top headlines which aren't that many except the finals. Here from the Clark and rookie class effect, plus I'm on a strike that I expect to go on for years where I'm just done posting about my team in the league because they are run so poorly. So more support of the W it is!

[MrDollarBills]

The step up in weight class is obvious.

What’s up with Boston? Looks extremely ordinary. Over rated?
.

Nah, absolutely not. She has elite footwork and touch. She's very good and has a high ceiling for growth.

I wouldn't let that game be an indication of anything really. The Sun are a veteran team with tough defenders. They're no joke. The Fever are a bunch of kids. It's gonna happen quite a bit this season lol

Yeah, you pick that up from the commentators re: the Sun. I honestly didn't remember her name, but remembered reading about Thomas w/the 3-way MVP voting results. Knee jerk upon viewing...the W equivalent of Ben Simmons had he stayed healthy and fulfilled his potential (even a rough looking shot due to her shoulder).

I'll trust Boston has the elite traits you call out, but TBD if she will effectively use them? To be fair, she's young too, only 2nd year and I think all the unrealistic expectations for Clark also spill over to Boston when you put the two #1s together.

Overall, I wish the Fever would've stopped trying to make so many awful lofted post entry pass attempts from the middle of the court. So many turnovers off that. That's crap a h.s. coach would ream you out for, so bummed to see that so prominent at this level.

Seems like the refs call more travels in the W than a whole NBA season. Though insanely lame on them for whistling Clark for 2 Q1, soft, ticky tack fouls. C'mon.

Watched a bit of the next game, and it's a good reminder that the Fever were one of the worst teams in the league last year and got CC for a reason. The talent gap really stands out watching them and the champ Aces b2b.

Side note: A lot of my posts/comments will be in the form of a question since I've never followed in any detail beyond the top headlines which aren't that many except the finals. Here from the Clark and rookie class effect, plus I'm on a strike that I expect to go on for years where I'm just done posting about my team in the league because they are run so poorly. So more support of the W it is!

No worries welcome to the party! We need more posters to participate and help to build this forum too

Alyssa Thomas is what Ben Simmons WISHES he was. Her game is beautiful to watch on both ends.

But again, i wouldn't jump to any conclusions after last night. You'll see that the Sun are on a whole other level as the season plays out. They're not a "super team" like the Liberty, Aces, or Storm but they are an elite defensive club.

Hell, the Storm got their asses kicked last night by the Lynx and they have legit superstars on their roster. It's early

[Wingy]

No worries welcome to the party! We need more posters to participate and help to build this forum too

Alyssa Thomas is what Ben Simmons WISHES he was. Her game is beautiful to watch on both ends.

But again, i wouldn't jump to any conclusions after last night. You'll see that the Sun are on a whole other level as the season plays out. They're not a "super team" like the Liberty, Aces, or Storm but they are an elite defensive club.

Hell, the Storm got their asses kicked last night by the Lynx and they have legit superstars on their roster. It's early

That makes sense, opening night is unique, especially that one. One factor I predict will be really tough on the Fever is that they’ll get everyone’s best shot and then some due to the Clark hype and fandom.

Similar to the effect where champs get a strong effort and get targeted by everyone else as a measuring stick. Except Indy is young and kinda sucky at this stage of their growth. Probably will be very rough in the short term getting so many “best shots” from opponents. Long term, it should toughen them up a lot faster than most young teams get to experience.

[sikma42]

Boston and Clark seem to be a mismatch re pace. Boston wants to use her body in the post and Clark wants to run p&r and get her moving into space. I’m not a Boston expert but she seems more comfortable on the block. They are going to need to find a happy medium.


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[MrDollarBills]

No worries welcome to the party! We need more posters to participate and help to build this forum too

Alyssa Thomas is what Ben Simmons WISHES he was. Her game is beautiful to watch on both ends.

But again, i wouldn't jump to any conclusions after last night. You'll see that the Sun are on a whole other level as the season plays out. They're not a "super team" like the Liberty, Aces, or Storm but they are an elite defensive club.

Hell, the Storm got their asses kicked last night by the Lynx and they have legit superstars on their roster. It's early

That makes sense, opening night is unique, especially that one. One factor I predict will be really tough on the Fever is that they’ll get everyone’s best shot and then some due to the Clark hype and fandom.

Similar to the effect where champs get a strong effort and get targeted by everyone else as a measuring stick. Except Indy is young and kinda sucky at this stage of their growth. Probably will be very rough in the short term getting so many “best shots” from opponents. Long term, it should toughen them up a lot faster than most young teams get to experience.

It's a rite of passage. Caitlin was visibly down on herself, that probably was the first time in a long time where she just couldn't do whatever she wanted on the court. Everyone will be gunning for her, if she thought that last night was rough playing against Dijonai, wait til Natasha Cloud gets her hands on her it's not gonna be easy.

She has the talent, size, skills, and IQ to be the best player in the world. But that title has to be earned, and there are women/people who have walked before her who are going to make her work for it. Hard.

[LewisnotMiller]

No worries welcome to the party! We need more posters to participate and help to build this forum too

Alyssa Thomas is what Ben Simmons WISHES he was. Her game is beautiful to watch on both ends.

But again, i wouldn't jump to any conclusions after last night. You'll see that the Sun are on a whole other level as the season plays out. They're not a "super team" like the Liberty, Aces, or Storm but they are an elite defensive club.

Hell, the Storm got their asses kicked last night by the Lynx and they have legit superstars on their roster. It's early

That makes sense, opening night is unique, especially that one. One factor I predict will be really tough on the Fever is that they’ll get everyone’s best shot and then some due to the Clark hype and fandom.

Similar to the effect where champs get a strong effort and get targeted by everyone else as a measuring stick. Except Indy is young and kinda sucky at this stage of their growth. Probably will be very rough in the short term getting so many “best shots” from opponents. Long term, it should toughen them up a lot faster than most young teams get to experience.

It's a rite of passage. Caitlin was visibly down on herself, that probably was the first time in a long time where she just couldn't do whatever she wanted on the court. Everyone will be gunning for her, if she thought that last night was rough playing against Dijonai, wait til Natasha Cloud gets her hands on her it's not gonna be easy.

She has the talent, size, skills, and IQ to be the best player in the world. But that title has to be earned, and there are women/people who have walked before her who are going to make her work for it. Hard.

I've always like Bonners ability to move at her height, both with and without the ball. Combined with AT's everything game (well...apart from shooting range) it makes them an interesting team. Plus they all work defensively.

CC, it's just one of those things. She wasn't far off a high points total, really, but the efficiency was obviously problematic, and probably will be through much of the season I think (hopefully not to THAT degree).

But man, oh man...they can't be giving her a usage of over 40 and expect good things to happen. Maybe have someone else hold the ball at the slot, use Boston as a low threat, set a screen for CC to come off the opposite wing...I dunno, just something.

The coach in me was cringing at handing CC the ball and expecting good things would happen.

To be fair, I also need to adjust to the specifics of the W, like an abbreviated period between the NCAA tournament, draft, and Game 1. Time will definitely help.

[Wingy]

But man, oh man...they can't be giving her a usage of over 40 and expect good things to happen. Maybe have someone else hold the ball at the slot, use Boston as a low threat, set a screen for CC to come off the opposite wing...I dunno, just something.

I’m trying to understand the dynamics with Kelsey Mitchell. Topped them in minutes, points and 3p shooting (amongst league leaders considering % and on volume) last season. Albeit inefficient, but still, looking at the team last night with Clark…they’re just weak on offensive talent in general so somebody must’ve needed to put up some tough shots I imagine.

To me she looked a lot more dynamic than any other Fever player out there besides Clark, but the minutes weren’t there despite their struggles.

My only thought is that she’s small, and perhaps a defensive liability, and paired with rookie Clark maybe coach thought it would be a defensive disaster? I also know she’s coming off an injury, so maybe they limited her minutes some??

The offense was just rough against the tough Sun D, so odd the 2nd most dynamic offensive player wasn’t played much relatively speaking.

[Braggins]

Mitchell was coming off an ankle injury and was listed as doubtful until the day of the game. She will start at SG when healthy and possibly be their leading scorer. Her efficiency was fine last season (58% true shooting, 40% 3pt).

They have plenty of offensive talent between Clark, Mitchell, Boston, and Smith. Their issue will be defense, which is why they probably need Lexie Hull to be in the rotation and to play Grace Berger a bit more. They need to move away from so many minutes from their undersized guards (besides Mitchell). They need to be able to get more defensive stops to facilitate their transition offense. When Dantas gets healthy they will have a bit more size in the frontcourt to work with off the bench at least.

starters: Clark ~ Mitchell ~ KLS ~ Smith ~ Boston
bench5: Berger ~ Wallace ~ Hull ~ Dantas ~ Fagbenle

[MrDollarBills]

That makes sense, opening night is unique, especially that one. One factor I predict will be really tough on the Fever is that they’ll get everyone’s best shot and then some due to the Clark hype and fandom.

Similar to the effect where champs get a strong effort and get targeted by everyone else as a measuring stick. Except Indy is young and kinda sucky at this stage of their growth. Probably will be very rough in the short term getting so many “best shots” from opponents. Long term, it should toughen them up a lot faster than most young teams get to experience.

It's a rite of passage. Caitlin was visibly down on herself, that probably was the first time in a long time where she just couldn't do whatever she wanted on the court. Everyone will be gunning for her, if she thought that last night was rough playing against Dijonai, wait til Natasha Cloud gets her hands on her it's not gonna be easy.

She has the talent, size, skills, and IQ to be the best player in the world. But that title has to be earned, and there are women/people who have walked before her who are going to make her work for it. Hard.

I've always like Bonners ability to move at her height, both with and without the ball. Combined with AT's everything game (well...apart from shooting range) it makes them an interesting team. Plus they all work defensively.

CC, it's just one of those things. She wasn't far off a high points total, really, but the efficiency was obviously problematic, and probably will be through much of the season I think (hopefully not to THAT degree).

But man, oh man...they can't be giving her a usage of over 40 and expect good things to happen. Maybe have someone else hold the ball at the slot, use Boston as a low threat, set a screen for CC to come off the opposite wing...I dunno, just something.

The coach in me was cringing at handing CC the ball and expecting good things would happen.

To be fair, I also need to adjust to the specifics of the W, like an abbreviated period between the NCAA tournament, draft, and Game 1. Time will definitely help.

Yeah I don't understand the logic of having her usage that high. Move the ball and utilize everyone’s strengths. Feed Boston the rock

AT's jumper is something we don't speak about lol. It's not pretty. Everything else though? Elite.

[cupcakesnake]

Boston and Clark seem to be a mismatch re pace. Boston wants to use her body in the post and Clark wants to run p&r and get her moving into space. I’m not a Boston expert but she seems more comfortable on the block. They are going to need to find a happy medium.


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I'm seeing version of this take quite a bit across the WNBA fandom, but it seems a little quick to feel strongly about this after 1 game. A lot of teams on night 1 just looked still rusty and preseason-y.

But I expect the Fever to have a brutal start to the season so I imagine this take only getting louder. Their opening season schedule is just hilarious. Sun, Liberty, Liberty, Sun, Storm, Sparks, Aces, Sparks, Storm... if they have 2-3 wins over the first 10 games, I'll be impressed.!

[Braggins]

Boston and Clark seem to be a mismatch re pace. Boston wants to use her body in the post and Clark wants to run p&r and get her moving into space. I’m not a Boston expert but she seems more comfortable on the block. They are going to need to find a happy medium.

I'm seeing version of this take quite a bit across the WNBA fandom, but it seems a little quick to feel strongly about this after 1 game. A lot of teams on night 1 just looked still rusty and preseason-y.

But I expect the Fever to have a brutal start to the season so I imagine this take only getting louder. Their opening season schedule is just hilarious. Sun, Liberty, Liberty, Sun, Storm, Sparks, Aces, Sparks, Storm... if they have 2-3 wins over the first 10 games, I'll be impressed.!

Yeah, I don't see any reason this would be a long term issue. It was their first real game playing together and they were going against an elite defensive team without their #1 scoring option being fully healthy.

[sikma42]

Boston and Clark seem to be a mismatch re pace. Boston wants to use her body in the post and Clark wants to run p&r and get her moving into space. I’m not a Boston expert but she seems more comfortable on the block. They are going to need to find a happy medium.

I'm seeing version of this take quite a bit across the WNBA fandom, but it seems a little quick to feel strongly about this after 1 game. A lot of teams on night 1 just looked still rusty and preseason-y.

But I expect the Fever to have a brutal start to the season so I imagine this take only getting louder. Their opening season schedule is just hilarious. Sun, Liberty, Liberty, Sun, Storm, Sparks, Aces, Sparks, Storm... if they have 2-3 wins over the first 10 games, I'll be impressed.!

Yeah, I don't see any reason this would be a long term issue. It was their first real game playing together and they were going against an elite defensive team without their #1 scoring option being fully healthy.

to be fair, this is what I've been saying since she was drafted. Again, not a Boston expert but watched her in college a bit and playing her into space isn't the best part of her skill set. She can do it but looks like she will be asked to sacrifice a lot.

edit: Also don't think this team is that bad based on what I've watched so far in the WNBA. They are just in a transition stage and need to get an identity.

[MrDollarBills]

Keep in mind: 8 players on this roster have 2 years or less experience. Erica Wheeler is the oldest player on the team and she is 33. Outside of Temi and Mitchell, the rest of the team are practically kids.

They are gonna take some ass beatings this season, I just hope that the media doesn't behave like idiots and try to drive some kinda narrative

[sikma42]

One thing I’ve noticed is the assists and turnovers with Caitlin Clark will prob be juiced.


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[MrDollarBills]

Stewie is out there cooking these kids

[MrBigShot]

Caitlin is definitely gonna have some growing pains. The WNBA is quite a bit more physical and athletic. Can't make the same passes or get space as easily.

[TheSuzerain]

Fever coach going to get axed.

[Braggins]

Fever coach going to get axed.

Amazing how much they are running their offense through a 33 year old 5'7" guard who shot 38% from the field over the last two seasons when they have Clark and two all-stars on the roster.

[Wizop]

Fever coach going to get axed.

I never understood why Jenny didn't get the job but maybe a Pacer assistant pays more than the Fever head coach.

[sikma42]

Fever coach going to get axed.

Amazing how much they are running their offense through a 33 year old 5'7" guard who shot 38% from the field over the last two seasons when they have Clark and two all-stars on the roster.

Honestly have no idea what they are doing g on offense. CC is clearly frustrated, she stopped even attempting to run the offense or cut off ball.

Coach is gonna have to run an entirely new offense. Weird thing is she had a lot of time to think this over.


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