Kelsey Mitchell’s uncertain future has left Indiana Fever fans wondering what comes next for the franchise. And of course, the possibility of losing a player who just produced the highest-scoring season in WNBA history is a legitimate cause for concern. However, the way WNBA analyst Rachel DeMita sees it, that is actually the least of the problems the Indiana Fever should be worried about heading into the offseason.
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Speaking on Thursday’s episode of the No Offseason podcast, DeMita pointed to the Fever’s lack of a clearly identifiable system or basketball identity as the primary issue they will need to address. For her, Kelsey Mitchell’s potential departure, while significant, does not translate to doom for the franchise. What could translate to doom, however, is heading into 2027 without a defined identity and a consistent system to build around.
“But my whole issue with all of this is, there’s a system with Caitlin and Kelsey and Aliyah, and there’s a system with Caitlin and Aliyah, and I think that they both work, but we haven’t had any sort of runway of an identity of what this Fever team is because it changes every single year,” DeMita said.
“If you look at the Valkyries, Coach Nakase went in there, they drafted the way that they did, they composed the team the way that they did. They made a statement of, this is Valkyries basketball. We knew from the rip it’s Valkyries basketball. In two seasons, Valkyries basketball is working. You go to the Atlanta Dream, you know exactly the style of play, you know the system, you bring in Angel Reese because she fits that.”
“It’s like the Fever don’t have an identity. And I think that’s the thing. I don’t think the Fever are doomed if Kelsey goes. I think it’ll be great if she stays. And I don’t think they’ll be doomed if she goes, but they’ll be doomed if they don’t figure out what their identity is and don’t stick to that,” she added.
To a large extent, the Indiana Fever’s style of play this season appeared to revolve around individual star gravity, with the trio of Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston, and Kelsey Mitchell at the centre of everything. And on the offensive side, it worked exceptionally well, particularly with the Clark and Mitchell pairing driving the engine.
Clark and Mitchell finished the season as the highest-scoring backcourt duo in WNBA history, averaging a combined 47.0 points per game. They both earned AP All-WNBA First Team honors, finished in the top five of the MVP voting, and set a record by scoring at least 20 points in the same game 16 times. Mitchell’s individual output was, in fact, the highest-scoring season in WNBA history outright.
It is no wonder why her end-of-season comments about intending to be selfish in free agency led to such a stir among the Fever fanbase. But while it is not yet certain she has made the decision to leave, what is certain is that the Indiana Fever, and Caitlin Clark specifically, are very much determined to keep her in the fold.
“We Need Her”: Caitlin Clark Reveals Indiana Fever’s No. 1 Priority This Offseason
The Indiana Fever are not being subtle about their intention to keep Kelsey Mitchell. And in her end-of-season interview, Caitlin Clark made that unmistakably clear.
“We’re gonna work our butt off to get her back. We’re going to recruit her as hard as we can,” Clark said. “We need her. We love her. I’ve shared with Kelsey how much I really want her back and how much I would love to continue playing with her. Hopefully we can keep her here for the rest of her career.”
Mitchell spent her entire WNBA career with the Indiana Fever, drafted as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2018 WNBA Draft. This is the first time she enters the offseason as a fully unrestricted free agent with no core designation, meaning her destiny is entirely in her own hands, and she has made clear she intends to treat it that way.
The message from the Fever camp is that they will do whatever it takes to change her mind. If her priority is financial, Clark has indicated she is willing to make sacrifices, potentially including forgoing some of the money available through an EPIC extension she is eligible to sign.
“I certainly know what I deserve and what I’m worth, but at the same time, sometimes you have to make sacrifices,” Clark said.
But whether Mitchell stays or goes, the bigger and more fundamental challenge for the Indiana Fever, according to Rachel DeMita, remains building a clear, consistent, and recognisable system, one that does not shift with the roster every season.