Indiana Fever has not been saved by Caitlin Clark. The team still has a lot of maturing to go.

Seattle: In just 24 days, the WNBA will begin its Olympic break. For Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever, it cannot arrive soon enough.

It was made clear on Thursday why the Fever had so many high draft choices in the previous several years—Clark at No. 1 in 2024, Aliyah Boston at No. 1 in 2023, and NaLyssa Smith at No. 2 in 2022—if you were wondering why. Indiana appeared to be a bottom-dwelling squad with a roster full of irate athletes. The score did not accurately reflect how close Seattle’s 89-77 victory was.

Jewell Loyd, a five-time All-Star and last season’s scoring champion, plays for the Storm. Although the Storm have talent, their roster has undergone nearly a total overhaul.

On Thursday, Seattle appeared to be a team that has been playing together for a long time; Indiana’s defense allows them to look that way. In the first half, Seattle fired an incredible 57.1% from three point range and 47.5% from the field. Loyd scored 23 points in 15 minutes thanks to the Fever. In just 15 minutes, Nneka Ogwumike almost achieved a double-double with nine points and ten rebounds. (Within the opening 36 seconds of the second half, she recorded her double-double.) Two more Storm players scored ten or more points.

And that were only the opening twenty minutes.
Clark said, “It never really felt great out there.” “It simply didn’t seem to be flowing well.”

Loyd made 6-of-9 shots from beyond the arc to finish with 34 points. At least seven points were scored by four additional Storm players.

Practice is sorely needed for The Fever.

“We still have a lot of maturing to do,” Christie Sides, the Indiana coach, stated. “It is exactly what it is. We must continue to grow, stay connected, and look for ways to do better in spite of the outside demands and noise.

For Indiana, Thursday was a good day. After suffering a foot injury on May 28 and missing the previous 11 games, Temi Fagbenle made her comeback, and even in her brief 19-minute stint, she appeared to be the player that had clicked with Clark early in the season. (Fagbenle finished with seven rebounds and eight points.)
Boston pulled down 14 rebounds, making them a monster on the glass.

And Clark (15 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds) was just as good as always, making a logo 3, dishing out a clever behind-the-back pass that Smith was unable to finish, and overall entertaining the sold-out crowd with her performance.

However, she was also pushed around a lot and was on the ground for a significant portion of the first quarter. Her frustration at the lack of calls and the disintegration of the team was evident.

“After the game, nobody likes to lose,” Clark remarked glumly. “We are not yet halfway through the season, and we have already dropped 12 games. We will not be grinning as we stroll around the court. It’s challenging to maintain your optimistic attitude while searching for that competitive edge. We can certainly do it more effectively.

The Fever were unable to obtain any of their own and gave away too many open looks. They gave up 22 possessions of the ball, which Seattle used to score 27 points. Indiana only mustered four fast-break points, compared to the Storm’s 17 points.

Prior to the game, Clark expressed her opinion that the Fever had made significant progress since their previous visit to the Emerald City, an 85-83 defeat on May 22 that depended on a last-second basket (Indiana mishandled the inbounds pass to Clark and was unable to obtain a look). However, everyone else has also improved.
With a young core that hasn’t figured out how to win against the best in the league, the Fever are still far behind.