Indiana Fever get back to practice while Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston reach semifinals with Team USA

INDIANAPOLIS – Hello! I am back from a much-needed vacation, as are the Indiana Fever.

Well, sort of. 12 of their 14 players – not including Damiris Dantas – are together in Indianapolis getting in some practice time before games resume late next week (minus one on Thursday as Monique Billings was out with an illness). Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston are in Berlin playing for Team USA in the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup. Head coach Stephanie White is there, too, as an assistant coach on staff.

The rest of the team is accounted for in Gainbridge Fieldhouse after about a week without formal practices. "This just gives us an opportunity to sharpen and to add, both offensively and defensively, ahead of the playoffs," assistant coach Briann January, who has more responsibility leading practices with White absent, said Tuesday.

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"They are huge pieces in what we do. But [we're] improving the other pieces and being able to lay the foundation with the majority of our group," January added of practicing without Clark and Boston. "They're going to come in and fill those spots seamlessly with the way they play, with their ability to pick up information. We have the majority here, so we are able to stack those days and get better."

A key part of this time for the Fever is locking in ahead of the postseason. Over half of the league is trying to do that, and it's a challenge without two star players. But the Fever are doing what they can with who they have. Conditioning has been a big focus – practice on both Thursday and Friday started with stretching, then a drill that featured hard running as players raced up the floor in transition and honed their outlet passing.

Friday, the roster was divided into three teams and worked on half-court sets, but with a catch: No ball screens and no dribble handoffs allowed. Off-ball play was critical, as was dribble penetration.

Refs have been brought in for scrimmages, too. Even without two of their top talents, the Fever's practices of late have been organized and formal as they get back into the swing of things.

"Just come in here focused," veteran guard Ty Harris said of the keys to balancing the rest vs rust components of mid-season time off. "Being a pro, you know when to turn it off and turn it on. You got your time [away]... then we've got to come back in the gym and [get to work]." Harris noted that her wind felt a bit different upon return, but things were back to normal in that regard after half of one practice.

For some players, like rookies Raven Johnson and Grace VanSlooten plus second-year forward Makayla Timpson, it was their first mid-season break as a pro. For VanSlooten and Johnson, it was needed after going straight from college to the WNBA back in April. Timpson has been through a WNBA offseason (and is headed to Project B in the coming one) but admitted the multi-week pause is a little weird.

"I was ready to get back," Timpson said. "That's just how it is with the love of basketball. Once you get away from it just a little bit, no matter if it's three, four, five days, you still have that nerve to get back to it." Timpson believes that the way these practices have been structured – easing in slowly last weekend, then getting back into a regular flow now – will help the team shake off rust.

VanSlooten went to Hawaii last week and enjoyed the time away. But it's go time now, and she thinks the coaching staff has done well to get the dozen in-market players back in the swing of things. Practices have grown more intense late in the week, but there has been a strong focus on recovery afterwards. That balance keeps health at the forefront while still keeping the team in game shape.

The Fever will be back in action on September 18 when they visit the Toronto Tempo. It's the second-to-last road game of the season for the Fever, and their only remaining game against a non-playoff opponent in 2026.

In the meantime, they are focused on defensive rotations and ball screen coverages. Austin Kelly, who also has been running practices along with January, explained the importance of those defensive abilities in preventing easy looks in the paint down the stretch.

"Those are the areas that we've kind of really struggled. As of late, you've kind of seen it a little bit more. It's been more glaring," Kelly said. "With the group we've got here, we've been addressing those things every day."

Kelly thinks that live reps will help. Outside of the week leading up to their game against Connecticut before the World Cup break, the Fever haven't had a ton of time for those in the last month. And next week, the team will get White, Clark, and Boston back before they officially play games again. For now, they are taking advantage of the significant time without keeping score.

Other Fever basketball rapid fire notes:

-Lexie Hull on the break: "So huge... a reset mentally, a reset physically."

-If you missed it, Raven Johnson fielded questions from reporters at practice on Tuesday. A catch, though, she was the reporter too. (And she had more comments than that, all of which are here).

-More of the Fever's approach to their final four games can be read here.

-White often refers to Kelly and January as future head coaches. This week with more responsibilities will help their growth as leaders of a team. Said January: "It's huge. Steph, she is a product of a coach preparing her to be a head coach. Lin [Dunn] did a great job in preparing her to get to where she is now. And I think she is actively doing that for Austin and I. Having these reps are huge. To be able to step into these positions and grow as a coach is awesome."

January said that White is getting practice reports every day, but they are trying not to bother the head coach too much as she deals with her World Cup responsibilities.

Added Kelly: "It's huge for our confidence, me and Bri. The practice planning is something that we've kind of done throughout the year the last couple of years... Steph does a really good job of delegating that and allowing us to lead and giving us help whenever we need it. It's been really good for my growth." Remember, Kelly was the team's acting head coach with White out for a few games in 2025.

-Here's a story about the Fever attacking the time off last week.

-Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is stepping down at the end of the year. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will name her replacement. Nobody that I've talked to has a good guess for who that will be. The first WNBA President and Commissioner Val Ackerman fielded a question about Engelbert to myself and the Indianapolis Star earlier this season – her response is here.

Also, in the World of Team USA

Clark, Boston, and White are off to the semifinals after beating Hungary by more than 50 points on Thursday. They battle Spain Saturday for a spot in the title game. Win or lose, Team USA will play on Sunday as there will be a third-place game. France and Germany sit on the other side of the bracket.

So far, the United States are 4-0 with wins over China, Italy, and Czechia in the Group Stage, then Hungary in the quarterfinals. Three of those wins were by over 30 points, but Italy made Team USA sweat. Italy had a lead in the second half but fell 55-52.

Team USA has struggled with zone defenses, their biggest concern so far. At some point in every game, they've solved their zone troubles. But it's of note that they've had to deal with a similar issue in almost every game. To their credit, Team USA shredded Hungary's zone – it was more 2-1-2 than the 2-3 alignments Italy and China went to.

Otherwise, Team USA has been dominant when making their open shots. So far, Clark is averaging a team-high 21.5 minutes per game, of note given that she's talked about her long-term health so often this season.

Her per game numbers: 8.5 points and 7.0 assists. Boston's digits: 6.0 points and 2.8 rebounds. Both have been below their typical level when it comes to efficiency, but Boston has been a key defender and Clark ranks third in the entire tournament in assists per game, trailing only Turkey's Sevgi Uzun (spent last season with Phoenix and Chicago and was with the LA Sparks for training camp this year) and Belgium's Julie Allemand (Toronto Tempo).

Clark after Team USA's final Group Stage game: "You can see our chemistry slowly building... I get to play with so many talented players, that's what makes it fun. Sometimes, it's hard to decide who to pass to because everybody's so talented."

Fever-adjacent player notes:

-Aces guard Jackie Young has been awesome in this tournament and has paired well with Clark. Against Czechia, the quartet of Clark, Boston, Young, and Breanna Stewart had great synergy.

-Rhyne Howard's shooting has also paired quite well with Clark. She's fourth on Team USA in three-point percentage but first in attempts per game.

-Angel Reese and Clark have been a great duo, linking up often against Hungary. Another great partnership has been Boston with Napheesa Collier in the frontcourt.

Video coverage of every game(s) so far

China:

Italy and Czechia (on demand after traveling, so combined into one):

Hungary:

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