Against all adversity, the Indiana Fever advanced to the semifinals of the 2025 WNBA playoffs with an 87-85 victory over the Atlanta Dream in Game 3 of their first-round matchup on Thursday night. It was Aliyah Boston that had the final word with a go-ahead layup to give them an 86-85 lead late in the fourth, and it was Lexie Hull that sealed the deal with a big steal in the dying embers of the game, but the Fever would not have gotten this far had it not been for the excellent play of Kelsey Mitchell.
Mitchell has always been a big-time scorer, but with Caitlin Clark out due to a groin injury, she had to take on the burden of being the first option — receiving the brunt of defensive coverages from the opposition in the process. But she's been a model of consistency for the Fever, and in their Game 3 win, she did drop a game-high 24 points, and she made some big-time baskets when her team needed her to.
For the Fever to have achieved this despite not having Clark on the active lineup is a testament to how much better the team has gotten from top to bottom. But perhaps what took this Indiana team to the next level was their decision to make a coaching change in the offseason, going from Christie Sides to Stephanie White — with Mitchell making it clear how much White's presence has made an impact for the Fever and her personally.
“I've never had a coach that poured into me, respectfully, like Steph has. For the first time in my career, I feel like I have someone that values what I bring as a player and person,” Mitchell said, per Tony East of Sports Illustrated.
Fever reach next level under Stephanie White
Mitchell has been a member of the Fever roster since 2018, and she's been needing stability since day one. Clark's arrival in 2024 did bring a jolt of talent into an otherwise shallow Fever roster, but they clearly did not jell well with their former head coach in Sides.
Sides did make some questionable decisions during her tenure with the team. But perhaps going from her to White is akin to the Golden State Warriors' decision to go from Mark Jackson to Steve Kerr.
One thing's for sure: the Fever would go out there and bleed for White in a way that they wouldn't for Sides — Mitchell certainly would.
