The point guard position at the Indiana Fever is definitely cursed. Caitlin Clark was the first to go as she missed her 14th straight game against the Minnesota Lynx with a right groin injury. Her backup up Sydney Colson, was next as she was ruled out of the season with an ACL tear. Their midseason signing to replace Caitlin Clark, Aari McDonald, stumbled out of that Phoenix game with a broken leg. When Sophie Cunningham stepped in as a replacement point guard, she tore her MCL. Now their fourth backup has suffered an injury that could be serious. 

 After a follow-through mishap on a fourth-quarter shot, Odyssey Sims hobbled to the locker room, adding to the Fever’s mounting injury woes. “She’s going to get evaluated tomorrow, so we’ll see.” Coach Stephanie White said after the game. Apart from point guards, Chloe Bibby missed this matchup because of a left knee injury as a precaution after she “felt something” pregame. With injuries piling up like Fever is at war, Lexie Hull has called for extra effort from the fit players after their Minnesota loss. 

Hull said, “We’re missing people, so everyone’s got to do a little bit extra, be a little bit more aggressive offensively.”

Hull defined this attitude against the league leaders. She eclipsed her career high within the first half with 18 points. She looked on her way to a 30-pointer, but Hull finished with 23 points with 9-of-16 shooting, including 4-of-7 from deep with 4 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 assists. As the game wore on, Hull crossed her average playing time of 26.9 minutes per game and ended up playing a game-high 38 minutes. That is almost the entire game. When asked if the effort took a physical toll, she stayed unfazed, channeling her focus into an inspiring plea for her team to keep fighting.

Hull told the media, “We’re down people, so we’ve got to suck it up, play a little tired a few minutes, and uh take in those timeouts as best we can. But yeah, I mean, we’re down people, so everyone’s got to do a little more.”

That’s the one thing the Fever pride themselves on: their determination to do their best. “We will never, never be counted out, because that s–– is worth f––ing gold,” White said after their comeback victory against the Sun. Every player is willing to give their all in their last stretch. It was visible in that close loss against the Lynx. Kelsey Mitchell played 35 minutes, Aliyah Boston played 32. With Sims’ injury, newcomer Shey Peddy had to play 22 minutes, where she impressed with 10 points and 4 assists. However, some reinforcements are arriving for this injury-ravaged side. 

Indiana Fever Add WNBA Champion On Another 7-Day Contract

After Cunningham’s injury, the Fever needed some Wing depth desperately. Hull had to work extra hard to keep up because there was practically no one to give her a breather. While she insists that everyone needs to give some extra effort, it is also true that it isn’t sustainable over the last few games if they want to qualify. To bring some respite, the Fever have used up their last roster spot by signing Aeriel Powers on a 7-day hardship contract. 

The No. 5 pick in the 2016 WNBA Draft has averaged 10.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.9 assists over the course of her WNBA career. Powers won the championship with the Washington Mystics in 2019 and spent time with Dallas, Minnesota, and Atlanta. She was a free agent when the season started, by was signed by the Golden State Valkyries when they had a crisis. However, she only played a total of seven minutes in two games.

She brings some experience and some depth to this razor-thin Fever side. Stephanie White and the Fever fans will hope that the injuries to Sims and Bibby are not serious and that they return for their next match-up against the Lynx. While there is still no update on any of their injuries, the luck does not favour the Fever this season. If we consider the history, we might have one of the two being replaced soon. Caitlin Clark is not returning any time soon, and her bestie Hull needs to tread carefully moving forward. After teammates fell victim to the Fever’s eerie “birthday curse,” she could be the next target on the injury list.