One thing that keeps DeWanna Bonner in tune on the court is the number on her back. Now, it is fair to think she had a tough decision in her hands when she had to choose between Caitlin Clark’s Fever and Mercury. Going back to Mercury meant a homecoming moment that now would have felt even more like home, considering her partner was already unpacking boxes there. But Indiana laid out its championship roadmap in neon, and Bonner had her own dream play drawn up. So, when the phone rang, she chose to invest in something that Mercury couldn’t promise and also hung on to the chance to tuck her kids in at night. Actually, in hindsight, it must have been an easy decision. Because there was no doubt in her mind that the “25” on her back would always have her back. 

Honestly, Bonner must have sighed with a thankful smile after her season opener with the Fever. The game held everything she could have hoped for: a victory, her name on an elite list, the love of her Fever teammates, especially CC, and love from 1,700 miles away. Well, here’s the full story.

Every Indiana Fever player was moving during the offensive possession, letting go of a few open looks just to get DeWanna Bonner a free look at the basket. The Chicago Sky defense smelled the trap, swarming Bonner and sealing every passing lane. Yet in the final moments of the fourth quarter, Caitlin Clark quietly urged her teammates to swing the ball back to Bonner, making sure the milestone shot came exactly when it was meant to.

“Hey, let’s get a basket for DB right now,” CC said during a time-out, aiming to make the DB’s first Fever game memorable. You see, Bonner was on 7487 points, a point away from entering the top three in the list of All-Time leading scorers. Knowing this, Caitlin Clark made her intentions clear. She said, “Come on, we’re getting DB into third place right now.”

Fever found an opening as Natasha Howard dished a pass to Bonner, who was cutting toward the hoop. With just a basket to make, Bonner tried from an elegant layup, but was fouled and went to the line for two free throws. This proved to be even better, as she banked her first free throw, received an ovation for leveling the total, and then again for moving ahead with her second free throw. With her arms stretched and a smile on her face, DB seemed happy as fans congratulated her with thunderous claps and the Fever Bench going crazy. Bonner now has 7489 points, one more than the previous number 3, Tina Thompson, and 230 away from the second-placed Tina Charles. Meanwhile, Diana Taurasi still leads the All-time scoring list.

“She deserves it”, Fever HC Stephanie White said during the post-match talk in the dressing room, while many other WNBA stars like Taurasi, Sue Bird also congratulated DB. But then there was a special message from one of her closest ones–her partner, Alyssa Thomas.

Addressing the press, she congratulated Bonner. “Super proud of her.” She said, “I have been along the ride, you know, she moved up these ranks. I know how much it means to her. I mean, it’s unheard of to be Top 3 (in scoring). That soaks so much to what she does and what she’s about.” The to-be-wed couple, once teammates on the Connecticut Sun and now starring for different franchises, have become a textbook example of a model long-distance couple.

But, of course, they fight too.

Both have admitted how their love for each other never deters them from their urge to beat each other at everything. “I don’t care if it’s popping some popcorn, I’m trying to have the best popcorn ever,” Bonner once said. To which Thomas jokes, “She usually loses though“. Well, don’t we love such banters? And god knows everyone is waiting for that ‘who makes the best popcorn’ debate to be settled once and for all.

When you listen to them, it makes so much sense why the Connecticut Sun members had dubbed them as “mom and dad” of the team. And their story is a modern love story. After some online meetings and stalking Instagram accounts, the couple finally talked in real life when Bonner went to the Sun in 2020. Those were challenging times as COVID had taken over the world, shutting down normal daily life. The athletes, too, had to live in these “bubbles” so they didn’t catch it. Thankfully, they had each other, and that was when sparks were first lit.

“You know, being in the bubble, we had nothing to do,” said Bonner. “We couldn’t leave, it was just in the hotel room all day every day, around the same person. So if you can do that, and spend that time with somebody and really enjoy it, I felt like, ‘OK, this could really be my person.‘”

Yeah, so the number 25 works. It must remind her of Alyssa, who wears the same number with Mercury, whenever she gets a little agitated on the court. Thomas is the calm one and has long helped Bonner soothe her nerves before games. So, yes, their goals might serve different teams, but their hearts only root for one another, and that’s sure to help Bonner achieve her only aim.

DeWanna Bonner has just one aim with Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever…

“I couldn’t be more excited to step on the floor with Caitlin,” Bonner said in her interview after joining the Fever. “I hope that I can give her some knowledge and take her game to a bigger level, so when I retire, she can pass that along to other players.” Yes, she will be a mentor, leader, and voice in the locker room for the Indiana Fever franchise. But there is still one more aspiration Bonner had when she joined Fever.

You see, DeWanna Bonner has played in more playoff games than anyone in WNBA history and won two titles. Her last championship came in 2014 – more than a decade ago. So, she doesn’t want to beat around the bush and wants just that.  “I want to get back to the Finals, first and foremost,” Bonner said. “I got there, and I lost, and it’s such a sucky feeling, and I haven’t forgotten that moment. I want to get back there. I want to win.”

Thankfully, she has CC by her side. Clark knows the edge Bonner brings to the team, which has just five returning players from last year. It’s Bonner’s leadership, her court awareness, and the undeniable authority in her voice—when she speaks, everyone listens. And as per Clark, “I think that was a piece of the thing we were missing last year“.

And that’s exactly why Clark wants to pay her back.

“For me as a second year point guard, I want to win for her. This is the end of her career, she deserves it,” Clark said, shedding light on why her only goal as well is a championship, coupled with the word ‘NOW’. And we don’t see any reason why that shouldn’t be the case.