Indiana Fever injured players give ‘boost’ for WNBA Playoffs

ATLANTA — As practice finished up on Saturday afternoon on the north side of Atlanta, the Indiana Fever gathered in their regular circle at midcourt.

Their claps started out slow, then gradually got faster as they waited for all of their teammates to join the group. First came Sydney Colson, walking with a slight limp on her surgically repaired left ACL. Then came Aari McDonald, who changed from a scooter to crutches as she is still non-weight bearing on her right foot.

The two were the last to join the circle, following fellow injured teammates Caitlin Clark and Chloe Bibby. But, for the first time in a while, they were able to travel with the team.

And it comes at the most pivotal time of the season, as the No. 6 Fever begin their playoff run against No. 3 Atlanta at 3 p.m. Sunday.

“It’s huge,” Fever coach Stephanie White said following practice Saturday. “No. 1, their communication, their perspective, and No. 2, just emotionally having them on board. It’s so hard when they’re injured because oftentimes you feel disconnected from the team, and we were on the road a lot this last month, so we were away from them a lot. They’re finally able to travel from a medical standpoint as well. I think having the whole team here, having those guys here, gives us a boost emotionally.”

Sophie Cunningham, who is out for the season with a torn MCL, was missing from the Fever’s practice, but that was because she was inducted to the University of Missouri’s Hall of Fame on Friday night. She will be joining the team for the game, flying into Atlanta after being honored at Missouri’s football game on Saturday. Damiris Dantas also didn’t travel with the team as she entered concussion protocol on Thursday. 

Indiana was ravaged by injuries in the second half of the season, starting with Clark, who has been out since July 15 with a right groin strain and left ankle bone bruise. Colson and McDonald, the Fever’s two backup point guards, both suffered their season-ending injuries on Aug. 7, and Cunningham was ruled out for the season after suffering her injury Aug. 17. 

An entire position group was decimated by the injury bug this year, and the Fever brought in two point guards on hardship waivers: Odyssey Sims and Shey Peddy. Sims, who starts for the Fever, is slowly but surely learning the ins and outs of the Fever playbook.

Having a battalion of point guards by her side on the bench can be an immeasurable help.

“You’re talking about three point guards that are sitting on the sideline,” White said. “They can talk to our team in huddles, they can talk to our team, throughout the course of dead balls or when they come on and off the floor.”

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The Fever’s injured players bring perspective and advice on the court, but they’re also a crucial part of the off-court culture and camaraderie this Fever team has.

Colson hosted an Instagram Live on Friday night with many of her teammates, chronicling how DoorDash and Insomnia Cookies messed up their cookie order. Clark manned the aux following practice during and after practice, dragging the oversized speaker around the court to laughs from her teammates.

“We miss them every day on the court, so to be able to have them — the front of our plane, normally we have empty seats, but it was filled on the say here,” Fever guard Lexie Hull said. “They bring energy, they bring light, they’re vocal leaders, all of them, so to have them on this trip is huge.”

The Fever have 16 players on the roster for the playoffs, which includes four on hardship waivers. Come Sunday, their biggest issue will be fitting 15 players, plus the coaching staff, on the bench.

“I don’t know how we’re going to fit everyone on the bench, it’s not that long,” Hull said with a laugh. “It’s been packed recently, I’m excited to see how we figure that out, but it’ll be great to have them back with us.”

WNBA playoffs: Indiana Fever vs Atlanta Dream schedule

Game 1: 3 p.m., Sunday, in Atlanta (ABC)

Game 2: 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, in Indianapolis (ESPN)

Game 3: TBD, Thursday, in Atlanta (ESPN2)*

*if necessary

Chloe Peterson is the Indiana Fever beat reporter for IndyStar. Reach her at capeterson@gannett.com or follow her on X at @chloepeterson67. Get IndyStar’s Indiana Fever and Caitlin Clark coverage sent directly to your inbox with our Caitlin Clark Fever newsletter.