ESPN Gives Indiana Fever Encouraging WNBA Playoff Percentage Chance

Despite their recent struggles, ESPN seems to think the Indiana Fever's WNBA playoff chances are still good.

Aug 24, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) looks on from the bench against the Minnesota Lynx in the second half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images | Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

The Indiana Fever have their backs against the wall right now. With seven games remaining in the 2025 regular season, the Fever currently hold a 19-18 record heading into their August 26 contest against the Seattle Storm.

This puts them at No. 8 in the WNBA standings. However, the fact that the Fever have lost six of their past eight games doesn't necessarily suggest this team is headed in the right direction regarding their chances of making the postseason.

Not to mention that a majority of their final seven games are against teams who are right around them in the playoff picture, which makes the stakes even more intense.

Aug 24, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White looks on against the Minnesota Lynx in the second half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images | Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

ESPN Gets Honest About Indiana Fever's 2025 WNBA Playoff Chances

On August 26, ESPN published an article talking about how five teams (the Fever, the Storm, the Golden State Valkyries, the Los Angeles Sparks, and the Washington Mystics) are battling for the final three spots in the WNBA playoffs. They also offered the percentage chances that each team will make the playoffs.

For the Fever, ESPN gave them an 88.2% chance, which was second-best behind the Storm (95.1%). In explaining this percentage, the article wrote, "With Caitlin Clark limited to 13 games and three other guards now out for the season, injuries have lowered the Fever's ceiling as they seek consecutive playoff appearances for the first time since 2015-16. The team has prided itself on its resolve in the face of adversity but has won only two games... since Aug. 5, begging the question of whether the Fever might be reaching a breaking point.

"New additions Odyssey Sims, Shey Peddy and Aerial Powers can't entirely make up for the losses of Aari McDonald, Sydney Colson and Sophie Cunningham (and continued absence of Clark), but they bring veteran experience that could be valuable in these sorts of high-stakes situations," the article added.

"Not helping matters: Indiana's upcoming schedule isn't very forgiving," it continued.

Five teams — Seattle, Golden State, Indiana, Los Angeles and Washington — essentially are vying for three playoff berths. Here’s how each can reach the postseason, the pivotal players and who holds the tiebreakers. https://t.co/AZorRKbqiG

— ESPN Women's Hoops (@ESPN_WomenHoop) August 26, 2025

The article also noted how Caitlin Clark's return from her groin injury before the end of the regular season would be pivotal for the Fever's chances — which should come as a surprise to nobody.

After Indiana and Seattle, ESPN gave the Valkyries the third-best chances to make the playoffs (76.8%), then came the Sparks (39.3%), and the Mystics were only given a 0.6% chance.

While the Fever's playoff chances seem encouraging, the bottom line is that they're going to need to start winning games against other fringe contenders. These wins are going to have to happen fast, and probably without Clark.