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Aari McDonald is known for being a little shy and a little reserved.
Perhaps that’s not too surprising, given she’s the youngest of six kids in a family that was known for being “very competitive,” as she told Swish Appeal when we spoke at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Thursday. As she told Her Hoop Stats in 2021, “My parents are like, ‘You know, you’re getting older. You need to start talking. You can’t be quiet forever.”
These days, McDonald is beginning to find her voice. As the newest member of the Indiana Fever, McDonald was initially signed on a hardship contract due to the dual absences of Caitlin Clark and Sophie Cunningham to injuries; she joined the team for the rest of the season after DeWanna Bonner was waived June 25.
McDonald has made it clear since day one she’s thrilled to be with the team. “It feels good. I’m so excited to be back,” she said. “Like I said before, just [in] my short stint here, it felt like the place to be.”
The entire Fever organization has been “so welcoming.” She added, “I think I needed that.”
McDonald grew up in Fresno, CA, the youngest of six siblings who made everything a competition—and she means everything. “We used to have shooting competitions out in the yard, and [the punishment] was push-ups. You lose, you get those push-ups!” she laughed. “It was competitive, so it was like every man for themselves.”
She graduated from Brookside Christian High School, where she racked up 1,500 career points in two years. She initially enrolled at the University of Washington, where she was named to the Pac-12 All Freshman Team while playing alongside then-senior star Kelsey Plum, before she transferred to the University of Arizona.
After a successful collegiate career that included leading the team to its first national championship game appearance in program history, McDonald was drafted by the Atlanta Dream as the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 WNBA Draft. She was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks in 2024, and joined the Fever this season.
When she isn’t on the court herself, McDonald also runs an AAU team based in Sacramento. The team is coached by her brother and managed by her sister-in-law, and boasts a coaching staff that’s all played Division I basketball. “The girls are good,” McDonald said.
“They stick together,” she explained. “They’re very coachable, and they’re great students.” “Their families are strong,” McDonald continued. She also tries to be out at their games as much as possible, even if that means flying back and forth her own.
Giving back to the girls is “everything” for McDonald, an admission that’s not difficult to believe if you’ve ever spent any length of time around her. And while she might still be on the reserved side (teammate Cunningham had to urge McDonald to take a seat ahead of our interview so she’d be comfortable, calling out, “Aari! Go ahead and sit down!”), her giving reputation is something that has followed her everywhere she goes.
Aari McDonald is a hard worker, a talented athlete and possibly the best addition to the Fever the team could have made this season—and she’s still got plenty of games ahead of her to keep proving exactly that.
