Indiana Fever fans received some unfortunate news as the team officially announced that 2025 Commissioner Cup champion Damiris Dantas will miss the remainder of the 2026 season after undergoing successful knee surgery on Monday to repair a torn meniscus in her left knee. With the playoffs approaching, losing an 11-season veteran could affect their center room.

The Fever made the announcement on August 4, and Fever reporter Scott Agness shared the news on his X feed.

“Just in: Indiana Fever veteran center Damiris Dantas is out for the season after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus in her left knee. She appeared in 12 games this season.”

In the 12 games that Damiris Dantas played this season for Indiana, she contributed 3.3 points, 1.5 rebounds, 0.3 assists and 0.2 steals per game in 8.2 minutes of average playing time.

This is her second stint with the Fever, having signed with them ahead of the 2024 season. Before re-signing in April, she had played 58 games for Indiana across 2024 and 2025, averaging 4.5 points and 2.3 rebounds per game.

Dantas’ contract is a two-year, $610,000 deal with the Fever in April. Dantas’ loss complicates Indiana’s bench depth at center, a position the Fever has struggled to fill. Aliyah Boston has been the only consistent presence. Dantas primarily played backup to Boston, and her absence leaves the position at risk if Boston is injured or unable to play for some other reason. The front office was quite optimistic about her signing in April, as COO and General Manager Amber Cox stated per an official Fever release.

“We are very excited to welcome DD back to the Fever this season. She is coming off another strong offseason overseas, and we are looking forward to her continuing to be a valuable contributor for us. In addition to everything she brings on the court, DD is a fantastic teammate, contributing to the special culture we want to continue to build.”

A Brazil national, Damiris Dantas began her career with the Minnesota Lynx. She went back and forth between the Lynx and the Atlanta Dream from 2014-2022, where she played a combined 202 games and averaged 7.6 points per game, before signing to her first stint with the Fever.

Coach Stephanie White also shared her thoughts on Dantas missing the rest of the season during Indiana’s practice session on Tuesday.

“Well, certainly we’ll miss her in the locker room. You know she’s a connector and her personality, and she’s a great communicator. She’s a vet, you know, miss her ability to stretch the floor, you know she can knock down a shot, she can give us a different look from that position as well.”

With Indiana currently at fifth place in the standings, there is certainly no room for complication, especially when defense has been somewhat of a problem for them.

Indiana has struggled with their defense all season

Losing a frontcourt player can hurt Indiana, considering that they have struggled with their interior defense when Aliyah Boston is not on the floor. They currently rank ninth in the league on the defensive rating standings at 108.4, and eighth in blocks averaged at 3.9 per WNBA stats.

They have struggled with their rim protection, allowing opponents to score inside the paint. Rebounding has also been a consistent issue. Without Boston, Indiana struggles against physical teams.

The lack of a traditional “big” on this team, other than Boston, means the bench lacks an elite shot-blocker to anchor the paint. Opposing guards easily penetrate for high-percentage layups and floaters without fearing a secondary defender rotating to contest.

When Indiana struggles to secure defensive rebounds, it leads to costly second-chance points for opponents, effectively neutralizing their high-scoring backcourt. This is evident from the fact that Indiana has set the WNBA record this season for most losses in a season while scoring 100 or more points.

Their latest loss against the number one side in the league, the Lynx, exposed the tactical gaps in this Fever lineup. Coach White will definitely need to address these issues if the Fever do indeed want to make a deep run this postseason, especially with a strong center like Damiris Dantas now off the active roster.