ARLINGTON, Texas – For Lexie Hull, this WNBA season has been a case of déjà vu.
Much like when she was a rookie in 2022 after the Central Valley High School product was the sixth pick in the draft from Stanford, she has mostly come off the bench for the Indiana Fever. As a rookie she played 26 games and started four times.
This season, the Spokane native has appeared in 20 games and made just one start, on July 10 against Washington when she played nearly 20 minutes. It’s a different role than last season when she started 25 of the 30 games she played in, but the affable 24-year-old isn’t complaining.
“Yeah, it’s a long season. The games go up and down,” Hull said prior to a July 17 game at Dallas, the Fever’s final contest before the WNBA’s Olympic break. “We’re playing well or we’re not playing well, so it’s just figuring out where you can make an impact and staying ready as much as I can. I feel like that’s what I’ve been doing this season and trying to be as prepared as I can be.”
Hull’s statement about the WNBA season being a roller coaster couldn’t have been more apt. Indiana started 1-8 but is 10-7 since. The Fever’s 11-15 record as the WNBA breaks for the Paris Summer Olympics has many around the organization thinking this could be the year Indiana returns to the playoffs for the first time since 2016, when the Fever lost in the first round to the Phoenix Mercury.
“Resiliency is the word (to describe how the team has evolved). What these guys have endured from 1-8, that start, (facing) the best teams in the league, early back-to-backs, it was just tough,” Fever head coach Christie Sides said.
“It was tough on them and tough on all of us with the expectations, that was even another game changer. Just that they kept showing up. They kept showing up, trying to get better even when we couldn’t practice, it was in video. Just the resiliency that they’ve shown, I’m just so proud of them for that.
“I don’t think a lot of people thought we would be sitting here 11-14 at this time. We’d won five (games) at this time last year. Just keep getting better, that’s all we keep preaching to them.”
One thing which Sides has especially appreciated is that no matter what role Hull has held, she’s continued bringing the same assets to the table for which she’s always been known – a positive attitude, strong work ethic, great hustle and a willingness to do whatever her team needs from her to be successful.
“She’s just consistent with her effort. She’s always just active,” Sides said of Hull. “That’s a trait of hers that is so good in basketball. She just never stops. She’s going to get deflections. She’s going to get steals. She’s going to draw the best defender and she’s just consistent with her role. I know she didn’t get the playing time that she wanted earlier (in the season), but she just kept working and kept working. And then when her number was called, she’s just been really big for us.”
Since the Fever selected Caitlin Clark first overall in the WNBA draft earlier this year, the hype surrounding the former Iowa star has been immense, drawing sellout crowds not only to Indiana’s home games but to most of their away contests with the recent game at Dallas being the latest sellout.
At times this season, the atmosphere surrounding Clark and the Fever wherever they go has been dubbed by some as carnival-like with hordes of fans, old and young alike, not only sporting Clark’s No. 22 jersey, which is the top seller in the WNBA, but also cheering her name and clamoring for a photo or autograph whenever she hits the floor.
Hull sees the bigger picture and continues to take in the whole vibe and appreciate everyone’s support.
“It’s just really exciting, everything about it. Playing in sold-out arenas pretty much every game, it’s really cool,” Hull said. “It’s really cool for the sport and for our team. We’re a pretty young team that’s building, so to build and grow in an environment like that is really special.”
Hull and Clark have forged a solid friendship over the past few months and the talented duo will travel to Mexico for a few days of rest and relaxation before the Fever resume practice leading up to their next game Aug. 16 against Phoenix.
“She’s a great person and a great player. It’s fun to get to know her outside of the court, outside of basketball,” Hull said of Clark. “She’s actually coming to Mexico with me. It’ll be a fun getaway for us.”
Sides is happy to have 11 of her 12 players remaining in town during the Olympic break. The lone exception is Kristy Wallace, who will play for Australia at the Games.
“The time that we’re going to get to spend, that will help chemistry-wise,” Sides said. “This is when they’ll get to practice and spend some time together not just on the road. So, they’ll get some time.
“Also, we’ll get to do some things differently. We’ll have time to implement new stuff. We’ll have time to tweak things, add things, and that’s exciting because we see what we have out there and what we can do.”
When she’s not practicing, Hull will watch as much Olympic basketball as she can and cheer on Team USA in the 5-on-5 and 3-on-3 competitions. Hull realizes how close she was to making the 3-on-3 team and heading to Paris to represent her country.
“Yeah, I was really close, and they had nothing but good things to say,” Hull said. “I’m right there, so just (need to) keep my head up, keep working, and hopefully, that’s in my future, for sure.”
The break will also give Hull the opportunity to indulge a little in what she calls her guilty pleasure, Golden Double Stuf Oreos, which she has loved for some time.
“I eat them,” she said . “They’re still very present. Oh, for sure (they’re my guilty pleasure). I’ve liked them forever. Those are my favorite, I prefer those.”
Her twin sister Lacie, her teammate at Central Valley and Stanford, continues to live in Austin, Texas, but is a periodic visitor to Indianapolis.
“She came to Indy at the beginning of the season. But I’ll see her at home and she’s coming out to Indy again,” Hull said. “She’s around.”
Stephen Hunt is a freelance writer based in Frisco, Texas.
