The Indiana Fever‘s 2024 season is over, but it was a thrilling one to say the least. Going from being one of the worst teams in the WNBA last season to making the playoffs, the franchise owes a lot to their 1st overall pick, Caitlin Clark. Clark came with a lot of fanfare following an incredible collegiate career and was as advertised in her first WNBA season, winning the Rookie of the Year award without any questions.
But she didn’t do it all alone. The Fever got plenty of contributions from other players. Kelsey Mitchell, in particular, was an outstanding backcourt sidekick for Clark. Aliyah Boston dominated the boards and was a fierce presence in the paint. Starter NaLyssa Smith averaged double digit points per game. But despite her efforts, could Smith be on the way out?
ndiana Fever can only protect 6 players from Valkyries expansion team
The WNBA will have an expansion draft at the end of the year, in order to allow the league’s newest team, the Golden State Valkyries, to choose players to start up their franchise. Current WNBA teams are only allowed to protect a maximum of six players from being drafted.
If fans had their way, Smith would not be one of those six. Many have opted to not include Smith in their Top 6.
Despite Smith getting off to a good start and starting 37 of 40 regular season games, she fell out of favor with head coach Christie Sides in the postseason. Smith played just 13 total minutes in the Fever’s two playoff games against the Connecticut Sun.
Clark will likely be playing with a new starting forward in 2025.
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