Indiana Fever

After her preseason debut at her alma mater of Iowa on Sunday, Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark spoke to ESPN's Holly Rowe about her return to her old home and made a bold declaration.

"A championship, that's our goal," Clark said when asked about the Fever's ceiling. "It's gonna take a lot of hard work, we got a new team so it's gonna take some time to put it all together. But I think everybody's thankful that we got some really great vets that have won before, and then we got some people back, and then Steph's amazing and her staff. So just taking time to put it all together, but it should be a great season."

Clark played 19 minutes in Indiana's 108-44 win over Brazil and looked solid with 16 points, six rebounds, five assists and a block. She shot 6-of-10 from the field and 4-of-6 from three-point range, and the Fever were +42 when she was on the floor.

Playing in front of nearly 15,000 fans at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, the Hawkeyes legend showed her comfort in her former home. She drained a 36-foot three-pointer from the Iowa logo before exiting the game.

Clark told Rowe that she enjoyed sharing the experience of returning to Iowa with her Fever teammates.

"I'm just thankful that I can bring 'em all here, I wouldn't be who I am if it wasn't for them," she said. "This is what women's basketball is all about, and all these 15,000 more people love them, too."

She also said the fans exceeded her expectations, noting that they "always do that."

The Fever are coming off their first playoff appearance since 2016, though they lost to the Connecticut Sun in the first round. Indiana reloaded in the offseason by adding veteran stars DeWanna Bonner and Natasha Howard to a talented young core led by Clark, Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston. The team could have enough talent to emerge as a title contender during the upcoming campaign.

Clark and the Fever will close out the preseason on May 10 against the Atlanta Dream and open the regular season on May 17 against the Chicago Sky.

In her first tune-up for the 2025 WNBA season, Indiana Fever second-year star Caitlin Clark already appears to be in top form.

Clark helped lead the Fever to a dominant 108-44 win over Brazil in her preseason debut on Sunday in her familiar former home of Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa. Clark finished with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc while adding six rebounds, five assists and one block.

Kelsey Mitchell led Indiana with 17 points in the victory, but the night belonged to Clark.

The Iowa alum received a standing ovation as she was announced in the starting lineup for the preseason showcase. In her 19 minutes of action, she registered a team-best plus/minus of +42.

Fans on social media were impressed with Clark's performance throughout Sunday's contest:

Clark and Indiana are hoping to make more noise this season after her stellar rookie year in 2024 in which she led the team to its first playoff appearance since 2016.

The Fever will play their final preseason game on March 10 against the Atlanta Dream before opening the regular season a week later against the Chicago Sky.

It's only Year 2 for Caitlin Clark, but the Indiana Fever star is already in the mix for WNBA MVP.

Clark, 23, has the second-best odds to win the 2025 WNBA MVP at +235, sitting just behind three-time MVP A'Ja Wilson.

2025 WNBA MVP Odds

• A'Ja Wilson (+200)
• Caitlin Clark (+235)
• Napheesa Collier (+475)
• Breanna Stewart (+650)
• Sabrina Ionescu (+1700)

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Some other young stars in the betting mix for the coveted award include rookie Paige Bueckers (+9000) and second-year player Angel Reese (+10000).

Clark's odds make sense given her play as a rookie, but there's also more to it than that. According to ESPN's Doug Greenerg, there has been a lot of betting action for her to win MVP already, with multiple sportsbooks reporting "at least 50 percent of tickets supporting her MVP campaign."

"The thing about Clark is that she just draws a lot of money no matter what [odds] we put her up at," DraftKings sportsbook director Johnny Avello told ESPN. "She's not some big underdog, her odds are low, so I don't think we're going to get hurt too bad [if she ends up winning]."

Clark, the No. 1 pick and Rookie of the Year in 2024, averaged 19.2 points, 8.4 assists and 5.7 rebounds as a rookie. She was named to the WNBA All-Star team and earned All-WNBA First Team honors last year.

If Clark can combine her impressive stats with a good year for the Fever, she could end up taking home the MVP trophy at the end of the season.

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark has been ruled out of her team's preseason home game against the Washington Mystics on Saturday afternoon with a left leg injury.

The injury doesn't appear to be too serious. Clark provided an update to reporters before pregame warmups on Saturday and said she was dealing with "a little tightness."

Clark did go through warmups and was seen nailing corner threes.

Saturday marks Indiana's first of three preseason games. The Fever are scheduled to host the Brazilian national team on Sunday before visiting the Atlanta Dream next Saturday.

Indiana is shooting for greater heights in Clark's second season after making the playoffs as a No. 6 seed with a 20-20 record but falling in the first round to the Connecticut Sun.

The Fever made a coaching change, hiring Stephanie White and adding some big names to the roster, including Natasha Howard, DeWanna Bonner, Sophie Cunningham and Sydney Colson.

Indiana should certainly be primed for a winning season and perhaps a deep playoff run now, especially with Clark running the show alongside former No. 1 pick Aliyah Boston.

Ultimately, this injury doesn't appear to be a long-term issue, and resting for this matchup almost seems precautionary. Thankfully, the regular season doesn't start for two weeks, when Indiana hosts the Chicago Sky, so Clark has plenty of time to get ready for that one.

Caitlin Clark isn't shying away from the massive expectations that surround herself and the Indiana Fever heading into the 2025 WNBA season.

The second-year guard told reporters Wednesday she's setting the bar for success at winning a championship:

The Fever went 20-20 and made the playoffs for the first time since 2016 last year. They were particularly good after the monthlong pause for the 2024 Summer Olympics. Indiana was fifth in net rating (plus-3.2), per WNBA.com, after the schedule started back up.

Clark was the single biggest factor in the turnaround. She shook off a sluggish start to average 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 8.4 assists. She was the Rookie of the Year winner and a first-team All-WNBA honoree while finishing fourth in the MVP voting.

A championship run would be a sizable step forward when the Fever got swept by the Connecticut Sun in two games, but the front office's ambition matches that of Clark.

The Fever hired 2023 Coach of the Year Stephanie White and signed six-time All-Star DeWanna Bonner and two-time All-Star Natasha Howard. They also acquired guard Sophie Cunningham in a trade that cost them forward NaLyssa Smith.

Still, Clark lifting a title this early into her career would put her ahead of the curve in terms of when other notable WNBA stars captured their first championship.

Breanna Stewart was in her third year with the Seattle Storm in 2018. A'ja Wilson was in Year 5 with the Las Vegas Aces, having lost once in the Finals to Stewart and the Storm in 2020. Elena Delle Donne was in the W for seven years before getting the Washington Mystics over the top in 2019. Diana Taurasi was with the Phoenix Mercury for four seasons before they even made the playoffs in 2007, when they went all the way.

Neither the reigning champion New York Liberty nor runner-up Minnesota Lynx got any worse in the offseason. The Aces secured Jewell Loyd as their replacement for Kelsey Plum, who bolted for the Los Angeles Sparks.

The Fever have some stiff competition in the 2025 title race. With the progress Clark made as a rookie, they will at least be considered a credible threat to New York.

Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White likened superstar guard Caitlin Clark to Taylor Swift when asked by Richard Deitsch of The Athletic on the Sports Media Podcast about how she can manage the "circus" around her.

"I think first and foremost, she does an outstanding job of managing it all. Like, she’s incredibly humble. She understands the big picture. So she views it understanding her celebrity, No. 1. But No. 2, she’s a Midwest kid, a Midwest person and she is who she is. She tries to live her life in an authentic way. But she’s very much Taylor Swift 2.0.

"So I think from my perspective, and from our staff and franchise, it’s how do we help her navigate all of this? How do we help her protect her peace? Because it can be a lot. How can we be a resource for her? It’s a different level now with social media and fan engagement. We want to be a resource and help protect her.

"She’s an incredible kid. I call her a kid, but she’s obviously a young woman. An incredible talent. She’s an incredible human being. She works her tail off. There’s a reason she is who she is in terms of a player. She’s handled all of this with such grace and poise that most 23-year-olds wouldn’t be able to."

Swift is one of the world's most recognizable celebrities and artists, and Clark has become one of the United States' most popular athletes over the last few years. She was named Time Magazine's Athlete of the Year for 2024, and the WNBA notably set viewership and attendance records during her rookie year.

"The WNBA attracted an all-time record of more than 54 million unique viewers across all its national broadcasting platforms during the regular season, and the league’s overall attendance jumped 48% year over year to its highest level in more than two decades," Sean Gregory wrote for Time.

So there's obviously an incredible amount of attention around Clark, a media circus of sorts. That's what Swift faces, hence White's comparison, but the Fever's new coach clearly understands the need to help Indiana's star player manage it all.

Clark somehow exceeded her massive first-year expectations, earning All-Star and All-WNBA First Team honors while leading Indiana to the playoffs for the first time since 2016. White happened to be Indiana's coach back then as well before leaving for Vanderbilt and then the Connecticut Sun before making her way back to Indianapolis.

Now Clark enters year two with the spotlight still shining bright. As White noted, though, Clark has done an "outstanding job of managing it all," so it's clear any external factors shouldn't have an effect on her play.

If anything, Indiana could very well make another huge leap as the team looks to take the next step in hopes of a deep playoff run.

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow gave a shout-out to WNBA star Caitlin Clark and pledged to attend an Indiana Fever game next season to watch the superstar in action.

"Shoutout Caitlin Clark, she's always fun to watch," Burrow told reporters. "I think she's bringing a lot of fans to the WNBA. She's going to continue to get better. She's an hour and a half from Cincy, so I'll have to go and make the trip."

Burrow just completed his fifth NFL season. Despite the Bengals missing out on the postseason, he had a career year, posting 4,918 yards and 43 touchdowns, both leading the league, along with a 74.7 quarterback rating.

Clark, a former Iowa State Hawkeye, lost to Burrow's alma mater, LSU, in the 2023 NCAA women's national championship game 102-85. However, she came back the following season, defeating LSU in an Elite Eight victory.

Clark, in her rookie season, averaged 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, 8.4 assists and 1.3 steals per game. The Fever finished 20-20, securing third place in the Eastern Conference.

Her standout rookie season also caught the eye of NFL star Travis Kelce, whose girlfriend, Taylor Swift, was seen at a Kansas City Chiefs game alongside Clark during a postseason game.

"Oh man, she's unbelievable," Kelce told reporters ahead of Super Bowl LIX. "She's the funnest one to watch right now and one of the best basketball players I've ever seen. And it has been so cool to see her at Taylor's concert, and coming out to a Chiefs game and hanging out with us."

Clark and the Fever will kick off the regular season against Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky on May 17 at home, with the sidelines likely to be filled with some notable names.

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark has handled the spotlight with grace, and she explained how she's able to overcome the pressure of facing constant scrutiny.

While speaking to reporters ahead of her jersey retirement ceremony at Iowa on Sunday, Clark was asked how she's handled outside critics and negative attention, and she declared definitively, "One of my greatest skills is like, I really don't care. Like, I don't. I don't care."

Clark has experienced a monumental rise to superstardom over the past few years since her historic senior season at Iowa in which she became the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer. She led the Fever to their first playoff appearance since 2016 and received 66 out of 67 votes for 2024 Rookie of the Year.

Still, the 23-year-old has displayed a maturity well beyond her years as she continues to garner more and more public attention. She added that she's benefitted from having a close-knit group of supporters to keep her on the right track.

"I think having a good circle around me, having a small circle around me of people that I really trust, those are the people that you can always count on and lean on, is what's been so important for me over the past year," Clark said.

The Indiana Fever agreed to a contract with six-time WNBA All-Star DeWanna Bonner, according to ESPN's Alexa Philippou.

Bonner averaged 15.0 points on 41.5 percent shooting along with 6.0 rebounds and 1.2 steals with the Connecticut Sun in 2024.

This continues a busy offseason for the Fever. They re-signed two-time All-Star guard Kelsey Mitchell and reportedly added forward Natasha Howard and wing Sophie Cunningham.

Indiana ended a seven-year playoff drought in 2024 and expectations are even higher in 2025 with Caitlin Clark approaching her second season in the league.

After the Olympic break, Clark averaged 23.1 points and 8.9 assists in her final 14 games. If that's where she's starting from to open the upcoming campaign, the Fever could be a top-four threat in the league.

Adding Howard and Bonner, two proven veterans, to the frontcourt is a sign of the franchise's lofty ambitions. Indiana's aggressive personnel moves also come after hiring 2023 WNBA Coach of the Year Stephanie White, who went 55-25 in the regular season in two years with the Connecticut Sun.

No team is set up better long term than the Fever.

They have Aliyah Boston signed through 2026 and Clark under team control through 2027. Those rookie deals will be massive bargains when the salary cap inevitably jumps thanks to a new collective bargaining agreement, whenever that's signed.

The upcoming season presents Indiana with a chance to not just improve upon a first-round playoff exit but make itself more attractive for prospective free agents next offseason.

With everyone waiting on the new CBA, almost every notable veteran in the WNBA has purposefully set themselves up to become a free agent in 2026. Indiana hasn't historically been a major draw for top stars, but that could change in a big way thanks to the promise Boston and Clark have shown.

Signing Bonner is already a sign of how the perception around the Fever is evolving.

Caitlin Clark is reportedly getting another high-profile teammate.

ESPN's Alexa Philippou reported Friday that veteran forward Natasha Howard agreed to a new deal with the Indiana Fever. This will be her second stint with Indiana, which drafted her with the No. 5 overall pick in 2014.

Howard was a secondary contributor during the first two seasons of her career on the Fever but eventually developed into an All-Star and defensive leader during future stops. She has played for the Minnesota Lynx, Seattle Storm, New York Liberty and Dallas Wings as well.

The 33-year-old was in Dallas the last two seasons and is coming off one of the best scoring efforts of her career in 2024.

She averaged 17.6 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.3 steals a night while shooting 45.6 percent from the field as a bright spot for a Wings team that struggled on the way to a 9-31 record.

It was yet another impressive season in a career that includes three championships (2017 with Minnesota, 2018 with Seattle and 2020 with Seattle), the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year, the 2018 Most Improved Player, two All-Star selections, two All-Defensive First Team nods and a spot on the 2019 All-WNBA First Team.

This move comes after the Fever announced Wednesday they re-signed Kelsey Mitchell, further underscoring their push toward championship contention with Clark leading the way.

Indiana reached the playoffs last season for the first time since the 2016 campaign but lost in the first round to the Connecticut Sun. Considering it was Clark's rookie season and the team went 13-27 the year before, all indications were the future is quite bright.

And now it is even brighter after re-signing Mitchell and adding a veteran leader like Howard.

Howard is also the type of experienced player who has reached the sport's highest stage who can help a young Fever team turn the corner when facing the postseason pressure. She should form quite the one-two punch in the frontcourt with Aliyah Boston as Indiana gears up for the 2025 campaign.