WNBA Boilers: Stephanie White Named Coach of Indiana Fever

Stephanie White is returning to her home state. The Indiana Fever have named the former Purdue women's basketball star as their next coach.

White returns to Indianapolis after spending the last two seasons as the coach of the Connecticut Sun. She led Connecticut to a 55-25 record in that time, reaching the semifinal round of the WNBA playoffs each year. In 2023, White was named the WNBA Coach of the Year.

we have named Stephanie White as our next head coach.

welcome home, @StephanieWhite!

📝 https://t.co/77Th6d6PoH pic.twitter.com/V3C5wSwKfN
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) November 1, 2024

Indiana hired White after making the decision to move on from Christie Sides following her second season. Sides posted a 33-47 record while leading the Fever, but guided the team to a 20-20 record and the first playoff appearance since 2016 this past year.

White has plenty of ties to the Fever organization. She played in Indiana for five seasons (2000-04) and was an assistant coach from 2011-14, winning a WNBA championship as a member of Lin Dunn's staff in 2012. White was also the head coach of the Fever from 2015-16, posting a 37-31 record.

As the coach of the Fever, White will inherit a roster that has Aliyah Boston and Caitlin Clark, the WNBA Rookies of the Year each of the last two seasons. Boston earned the award in 2023 and Clark won the honor in 2024.

There will be high expectations in Indianapolis as White takes over the franchise. After reaching the playoffs this past season, there's now a belief that the Fever could have one of the best teams in the WNBA for the foreseeable future.

As a player at Purdue, White was a key member of the 1999 national championship team. She was the Big Ten Player of the Year after averaging 20.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.2 steals per game. The Boilermakers went 34-1 that season.

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