The Indiana Fever closed out the preseason not with a whistle, but a tunnel takeover. The team circled up postgame, as their rookie, Makayla Timpson, stepped into the middle of the huddle and broke into some unexpected moves that had no business being that smooth. “I like it. I like that!” Caitlin Clark said, clearly impressed and maybe reminiscing about her own rookie days. But little did Clark know that more surprises were flying her way… literally. And just like always, she was all in, matching the hype beat for beat. And this latest one required no songs or choreo. Makayla Timpson’s 6’10” wingspan did the work just as nicely.

Actually, Timpson showed glimpses of that during the training camp itself by catching Clark’s shots. However, the most explicit display came when she straight-up rejected Rickea Jackson’s shot in Fever’s recent game against the Sparks. It was a reminder of why she ranked third in the nation in blocks per game during her Florida State days.

With just over 30 seconds left in the first quarter and Indiana trailing 21-20, Jackson took a handoff from Dearica Hamby, came off a screen, and spotted a clear path to the basket. But Makayla Timpson came sprinting in out of nowhere and swatted the shot toward the sideline with authority. And guess who caught the ball? None other than Caitlin Clark, who was sidelined with a groin injury.

It felt like a full-circle moment – like they picked up right where they left off after that pregame hug in the middle of the team huddle. Only this time, the love came wrapped in a highlight. The entire Fever sideline gave Timpson a standing ovation. Aliyah Boston and Sophie Cunningham greeted the rookie with a high five as well.

But the appreciation didn’t end there. That Makayla moment seems to have been posterized by the netizens. The internet just can’t stop talking about it.

From Caitlin Clark’s Hands to Everyone’s Timelines

And just like that, it was all over social media. One fan put it perfectly: “Omggg not y’all posting it too 😭😭😭 this feels worse than a dunk.” Well, as soon as the likes of Dominique Malonga and Makayla Timpson entered the W, everyone’s hopes shot up. In a league that has barely seen any dunks, they have been banking on them to make dunks an everyday sight with their size and reach. And who can forget how her mentor, Natasha Howard, had challenged Timpson to dunk once? “Waiting on you,” the rookie had said then, and she has been proving that soon enough, she is gonna grill someone, if not Howard, with a dunk. Till then, such blocks will do the job of making her look scary.

Yet, we would be lying if we said we were not waiting eagerly for her to jump above the rim. As one user said, “I’m just waiting for the Timpson dunk! It’s coming…” Sadly, that moment didn’t come last night. Timpson was far too busy making noise on the defensive end. As she once put it “I’ve been pretty good on defense, just making sure that’s my anchor and rebounding, running, just doing the little things I can do to stay on the court.” But with the nicknames that have been going around for her, looks like the fans expect her to do more.

But before any of that, there’s a certain level of perfection Timpson hopes to reach in the little things. When fate, in its usual playful way, landed her on the same team as a former Florida State star, her mentor, and the very player whose record she had just broken in college, Timpson was starry-eyed. Her excitement was bursting at the seams. “A lot of fun things, you know. Hopefully, I can go in there and block a lot of shots, you know. And just do the things that I did here, to perfection,” she told reporters after the draft. To perfection!! And didn’t she just do that today?

So, as one person wrote, “Mikayla Pippen?” another sealed the expectations with “Mutombo Block, Makayla Monster Block.” Don’t get it wrong though, she has also proved that she can score. Just rewind to her performance vs. the Aces, where she and Natasha Howard teamed up for the @StateFarm Assist of the Game. One dished, the other delivered, and together they showed they’re more than just a defensive duo. And one fan caught on to it as they wrote, “When Howard can’t get up there just put Timson’s youthful legs in the game, Coach!!!” 

After all, their bond goes way back to Florida State. Back then, Fever forward Natasha Howard texted Makayla Timpson before each game during her junior year. “Happy Game Day. Take the shot you want to take, and if you don’t have the shot, rip and go,” read Howard’s messages. And now, Makayla has made it to the talks of being in the starting lineup under Howard’s veteran presence. As one fan expressed, “Kk should start instead of Hull.” That’s quite a valid request actually. Just consider that FeverStats’ X post from July 3, saying, “The Fever are undefeated when Makayla Timpson plays 10+ minutes”. 

And fans have realized why. “The 2nd best part of DB quitting. KK finally getting some minutes. Dantas being gone also helps,” said one person. Some even felt that the “Fever is so much better without Caitlin 🔥🔥.” That narrative has been floating around for a while, but after last night’s loss, even the critics might be backing off. Aliyah Boston and Natasha Howard did everything they could, dropping 23 and 21 points respectively, but there’s no denying the team felt Caitlin Clark’s absence.

Still and all, Timpson has made her case loud and clear. She deserves more minutes. Whether that actually happens once Clark and Dantas are back is something that remains to be seen.