Seventeen and ten. Three straight wins. And now Stephanie White's taking the leash off Caitlin Clark heading into the break. If you're just joining us, this injury watch started with Clark's back and her minutes, then widened — Aliyah Boston popped up on the report, Damiris Dantas went out with a left knee injury, and rookie Raven Johnson got banged up ahead of Connecticut. Indiana's been trying to push for the playoffs while keeping its core healthy for the stretch run. This is Indiana Fever Daily. Today: where 17-10 puts them in the standings, three Fever starters making the All-Star roster, and what 'unleashing' Clark means with that seventh tech still hanging over her. Let's get into it. If you want to keep up with Fever star injury watch, tap follow so the next episode lands in your feed. Here's TribTown:
The 17-10 Fever, winners of three in a row, have been stampeding through foes lately, none more emphatically than the Connecticut Sun, 123-88, Wednesday night. Indiana’s three all-stars, Caitlin Clark (27 points, 11 assists), Kelsey Mitchell (23 points) and Aliyah Boston (22 points) were very much all-stars in crushing Connecticut at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Seventeen and ten, three straight, and a franchise-record 123-88 win heading into the break. This is the team we were promised in May. We just didn't get it in May. And it's not one player carrying them — Clark had 27 and 11, Mitchell 23, Boston 22. All three All-Stars showed up like it in the same 40 minutes. Seventy at the half! That's the franchise record inside the franchise record. You don't accidentally hang 70 by halftime on anybody. Sixty-one percent from the floor, and they held a 7-20 Connecticut team down — that's the part I care about more than the point total. The question all week was whether the defense would travel back home. It did, emphatically. Mitchell said it was about having the basketball gods on your side. I think the basketball gods just call it 61 percent shooting, but I'll take the vibes. The next game that counts is Seattle on the 28th, not Saturday's exhibition. But you'd much rather exhale at 17-10 than limp in wondering who this team is. They know who they are now. Here's Paolo Songco at Athlon Sports:
White lifted Clark's minutes restriction for the first time since her return from a lingering back injury. The decision gave Clark full freedom to operate without limitations for the first time in weeks. She took full advantage, posting game-highs of 27 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field, along with 11 assists. Clark also drilled 5-of-9 shots from deep in 27 minutes.
So the leash comes off, and Clark goes for 27 and 11 in 27 minutes. Five of nine from deep. That's the version of Clark we've been waiting for since the back thing. And here's where the injury watch stands — the minutes limit is gone. This was her first unrestricted night since returning from the back injury that ate most of her 2025, and she says she feels like herself again. But look at White's call here. Clark's one technical away from a suspension, and White chose this game to turn her all the way loose. She's threading that needle on purpose. Right, that seventh tech's still hanging there. So the second-half question isn't the back anymore — it's whether one whistle costs them a game now that she's finally at full throttle. Her own reaction was basically a shrug: 'Oh, I played 27 minutes. That's crazy.' She was joking, but you can hear the relief in it. This had been building for three straight games. After the 123-88 we just walked through, I'll take Clark feeling like herself heading into the break every day of the week. From Andrew Gitto at Sporting News:
Headlining this year's WNBA All-Star teams are the two most recent Rookie of the Year recipients are Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers (2025) and Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (2024). Between the two stars, they combined for over two million votes and had just north of a million each. Fever star Aliyah Boston and the Las Vegas Aces' perennial MVP threat A'ja Wilson round out the top-four of the players who received the most votes.
The rosters are official — Clark and Bueckers headline them, with over two million votes between them and right around a million each. The two most recent Rookies of the Year at the top of the marquee — that's a fun bit of symmetry. And Indiana's all over this roster — Clark's in, and so are Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell. Three Fever starters at the break puts a legit chunk of the league's best on one roster. Mitchell's the one I want people to notice. She just tied the record by making eleven straight threes, she's carried the scoring all season, and she's not the name in the headline. That spot came from what she did on the floor, regardless of the marketing deck. Right — the votes put Clark and Bueckers at the top, but the draft put Mitchell in that same tier. Weatherspoon and Cooper are picking the teams this year at the United Center, and Kelsey's someone you take early if you actually watch the tape. My one asterisk: three starters is great, but it also shows how top-heavy this roster is with the bench banged up. The break's landing at exactly the right time. Yahoo Sports, with Natasha Howard; Olivia Miles:
The WNBA season has officially reached its All-Star break. Teams and players will get a much-needed rest period before the second half of the season kicks off. And who knows? Maybe some front offices are using this time to discuss potential moves before the August 2 trade deadline. After a marathon of games yesterday, here's the current landscape across the league as we enter the All-Star break.
So here's how Yahoo has the standings at the break, and yeah — Minnesota's the class of the league. They're 22-6 with a plus-8.7 point differential. Nobody's arguing that. Indiana's fifth at 17-10, four and a half back. But look one column over — that plus-5.9 point differential is better than the Aces and the Wings sitting above them. Right? That 123-88 blowout we just talked up is padding the number, sure, but a team that can win by that margin isn't some fluke five-seed. And the August 2 trade deadline is nine days away. Now you have to ask whether a 17-10 team with a thin bench stands pat or goes shopping to climb the standings. Catch Minnesota? That's a mountain. Chase down Dallas and Vegas for a top-four spot? That's on the table. Here's Rodney Knuppel at Sporting News:
Although Clark reportedly declined an invitation to participate in the WNBA 3-Point Contest, she will not be staying out of the spotlight until the All-Star Game. The WNBA announced Wednesday that Clark is scheduled to appear at WNBA Live, the league’s interactive fan event at McCormick Place’s Lakeside Center in Chicago. Clark’s appearance is scheduled for Friday, July 24, giving fans an additional chance to see one of basketball’s biggest stars before the All-Star Game.
So Clark declined the 3-Point Contest, but she's showing up Friday at WNBA Live over at McCormick Place. More appearances, more marketing — and this is supposed to be her break, right? It's the fan event, Joey. And she won't be alone — Kelsey Mitchell's on that same lineup, along with A'ja Wilson, Napheesa Collier, and Paige Bueckers. Right, but nobody's writing the headline 'Napheesa Collier adds special appearance.' It's Clark's third straight All-Star appearance, she's averaging 20.7 and ranks second in the league in assists, and the machine still wants her doing the meet-and-greet on her days off. I'd watch the split here: she declined the three-point contest, then said yes to the fan floor. She's choosing where the workload goes — skip the competitive reps, keep the connection. Yeah, and honestly? That's the smart split. Save the legs, still show up for the fans in Chicago. I'll take it. If you want another daily dive into women's sports, check out the Angel City Daily Podcast. It's your daily ACFC supporter briefing, with match reaction, NWSL standings, roster moves, women's soccer in Los Angeles, and supporter buzz. Find it wherever you listen to podcasts.
Today, Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell are scheduled to appear at WNBA Live at McCormick Place. Then comes Saturday's WNBA All-Star Game at the United Center, before Indiana resumes regular-season play in Seattle on July 28.
You'll find links to every story in the show notes, so take a look at anything that caught your attention.
That's it for today's Indiana Fever Daily Podcast. This is a Lantern Podcast.