The Fever squad is locked and ready to go with their season opener against the Chicago Sky just days away. Set for May 17, this matchup has fans buzzing with excitement as Indiana looks to kick things off with a bang. Indiana will be starting their season with a roster at par with the league minimum, eleven. While an eleven-player roster does give the team breathing room in the cap space department, it inevitably cuts into the squad’s depth. With a scare to Caitlin Clark’s quad barely a week ago and injuries already looming large, Has Stephanie White made a mistake?

While the injury to Clark’s right quad was later classified as “tightness” and not a sign of worry, Sophie Cunningham and Damiris Dantas’ unavailability is still a source of tension. Caitlin’s quad issue had fans holding their breath, but she bounced back strong, dropping 13 points, seven assists, and six rebounds in 23 minutes against Atlanta. Dantas had suffered a left lower leg injury, forcing her to sit out their last preseason game against the Atlanta Dream and no return date ha been confirmed by the team.

Adding to Indiana’s misery, newcomer Sophie Cunningham who was winning over the city with her impressive performances, suffered an injury. In the third quarter of the Fever’s final preseason game, Sophie rolled her ankle when she came down on Dream guard Rhyne Howard’s foot while trying to secure a rebound. She was then seen limping on her way back to the locker room. As the concerns around the team continued to grow, the media looked to Stephanie White for answers.

Just yesterday at practice, Sophie was spotted on the sidelines, no brace or boot on her ankle, and moving around normally, which has fans hopeful she’ll be back soon.

Following the tenth day of training camp, Coach White provided relief to the fan base. “I mean, it’s going to be a day-to-day thing, just seeing how she recovers just aday-to-day. I’ll depend on our training staff to tell me what she’s capable of doing everyday and we’ll see how it goes.” She said of Sophie Cunningham’s injury. A very similar answer was given by the coach for Damiris Dantas signaling it’s only a matter of days before the team is at full strength. “They’re ready physically and mentally as well. So again, I just, I trust the training staff to tell me what they’re allowed to do and what they’re not allowed to do and then we’ll go from there.” 

While these injuries were simply minor, serious injuries could derail Indiana Fever’s potential championship season.

The WNBA’s no joke—last year, teams like the Seattle Storm got hit hard when players like Nika Muhl went down with ACL tears. But champs like the 2024 New York Liberty powered through with versatile rosters, and Indiana’s banking on the same kind of depth to weather any storms.

Which once again begs the question, could the mistake of sacrificing depth cost them deep into the season?

Do the Fever have enough?

The Fever made their final cut by waiving Jaelyn Brown yesterday, unofficially marking the start of the season for this team. That move locked in a tight 11-player squad, with big names like DeWanna Bonner, Natasha Howard, and Sydney Colson joining the core of Clark, Aliyah Boston, and Kelsey Mitchell. It’s a roster built for quality, not quantity, with veterans who’ve been to the Finals and know how to win. Discussing her squad’s depth, Stephanie showed confidence, comparing her squad to their male counterparts. “Well, I think first and foremost we’re going to be a deep team. You know, we’re very much like the Pacers in that we can play, you know, 10 deep, maybe 11 deep depending upon the matchups. So we’re going to be deep and we’re going to use our bench.” 

White’s comments show the faith she holds in her squad and that while Fever might have on less spot on the team, they will emphasize on quality. With protected contracts for Mitchell and Howard eating up cap space, keeping just 11 players gives them wiggle room for future moves, but it’s a gamble if injuries pile up. This approach by the coach will also help the rest the players during games and avoid injuries in the process. Fever have shown they have enough quality on their side gliding undefeated through the past season. While Caitlin Clark did drop bombs from deep in her return to the Carver-Hawkeye, several players stepped up at different points in the preseason.

Sophie Cunningham lead the scoring in the first game, Kelsey Mitchell in the second, and Lexie Hull in the third. This isn’t just the “Caitlin and Aliyah show” anymore; the new depth is already making a difference. Sophie put it simply “We just have a squad, and our depth is amazing.” Seeing different players step up in key moments, like Hull’s fourth-quarter scoring against the Dream or Cunningham’s 21 points off the bench in the Mystics game, shows that the added experience and talent are already paying off. While it’s still just preseason, going undefeated and seeing this kind of balanced contribution has definitely given the Fever and their fans a huge boost of confidence heading into the regular season.

With strong performances coming in from the incoming veterans and promise being displayed by draftee Makayla Timpson, it is safe to say White’s squad has enough quality to help sail through the storms of injury.