For the Indiana Fever, the Seattle Storm game marked a potential turning point. But for Aliyah Boston, it was something even more personal. The Fever clinched the win, returning to winning ways, but Boston, who had made the team’s frontcourt literally her own, was missing due to an injury.

On the surface, it might not ring a bell, but the fact that gives Boston’s absence weight is that it was the first time in 8 years she had missed a basketball game. Now, a few days later, a veteran analyst has doubled down on Boston’s injury.

For context, based on official reports, the Fever haven’t confirmed the severity of Boston’s injury. But on her YouTube channel, Rachel DeMita discusses the report from insider Scott Agness regarding the possibility of Boston’s injury.

“So a lot of fans are wondering like, what is this injury? So, Scott Agness actually reported that it was a meniscus injury originally. The injury that happened to her during Unrivaled was a meniscus injury,” DeMita said.

“There are certain meniscus tears that kind of get in the way of what you’re doing. So, you might have some pain and soreness, but it’s okay to push through it. A lot of times, even a meniscus tear, if it’s not severe, you can kind of play through it, and you don’t have too much risk of damaging other things because you still have your stabilization,” she added further.

Boston sustained a meniscus tear in the offseason during her commitments to Phantom BC during the Unrivaled season. As a result, the Fever Center was already under minute restriction. The team was doing everything possible to keep her fit in the long term, but the Washington Mystics game last week just flipped the conversation.

After playing just 21 minutes, Boston moved to the locker room due to an injury to her right foot and didn’t return to the court again. It isn’t known whether the current injury is an extension of her previous injury at the Unruvaled, since White hasn’t confirmed it.

Both these injuries are to the same right lower body region. So, going by those assumptions, Rachel DeMita also highlighted Boston’s recovery process from the injury, in case it’s to her meniscus.

“So, a lot of time, it’s a cleanup kind of scope surgery, ” DeMita added. “And those you recover pretty quickly. I do think if Aliyah Boston had surgery tomorrow, she’d probably be back by the end of the season to play. But the surgery isn’t foolproof either. So, meniscus injuries are just so irritating because you can be at 70-80%, but getting to 100% with a meniscus injury is hard.”

DeMita’s assessment makes sense. Meniscus recovery is mainly of two types: partial meniscectomy and meniscus repair. The first one is a quick process, and it requires around 4 to 6 weeks of recovery for the athlete. But in the second case, the doctors largely stitch the torn parts and thus require around 3 to 6 months of recovery time.

For now, the Indiana Fever’s head coach has said Aliyah Boston is day-to-day. However, if there’s something serious regarding the injury that White isn’t mentioning in the public domain, the Fever might have a daunting task on their hands.

The Fever successfully passed their first test without Boston, beating the Storm at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. But their next game might be a bit trickier.

Indiana Fever Hosts Portland Fire Up Next Amid Aliyah Boston’s Injury Fiasco

With the approach Stephanie White took with her players in the preseason, it’s quite certain the Indiana Fever won’t rush Aliyah Boston back, even if she’s at 50%. Thus, Boston’s availability for the game still leaves a question mark. And it can only be determined when the injury report comes out before the game against the Portland Fire on May 20.

If Boston stays out of the game, the Fever will have a challenge on their hands to fill her shoes. The Fire might be an expansion team, but they have been in a giant-slaying arc right now. The Portland Fire already defeated a stacked New York Liberty a few days back and is coming off a win over the Connecticut Sun.

Their players, including Bridget Carleton, are firing on all cylinders this season. Carlton is averaging over 16 points per game this season while also leading the team in assists and steals. Carla Leite is another player the Indiana Fever should be wary of on the court, with an average of over 19 points per game.

Thus, defending these players on the court won’t be easy at all for the Fever without Boston. The Fever does have strong perimeter defenders like Lexi Hull and Raven Johnson. But the level of physicality that Boston brings to the frontcourt is difficult to replace.

The Fever’s center’s skill set isn’t just about that. With her strong defensive and rebounding skills, Boston also provides an entirely new offensive dynamic for the team. Thus, without her, the pressure of offensive output will fall majorly on Caitlin Clark, Kelsey Mitchell, and Sophie Cunningham.

In Aliyah Boston’s absence, the Fever will put their faith in Monique Billings and Myisha Hines-Allen. They showcased hustle on loose balls and have defended the paint well. Now, it will be interesting to see how they fare against an entirely new opposition in Portland Fire, without Boston.