Lisa Leslie Ponders if Fever Can 'Survive' Without Caitlin Clark Before Sky Game
The Indiana Fever have amassed a 1-2 record while star guard Caitlin Clark has been sidelined with a left quad strain. Once this injury was announced last week and it became clear that Clark would be missing at least four games (with the fourth game being Indiana's June 7 contest against the Chicago Sky), some believed that the Fever could still go 4-0 without her, given their relatively easy strength of schedule.
Then Indiana lost to the 3-6 Washington Mystics and the Connecticut Sun, the latter of whom is 0-6 against every other team this year. Therefore, it's clear that Clark's absence is felt by the team.
And during a June 6 episode of her new Between the Lines show, WNBA legend Lisa Leslie spoke about whether the Fever can keep afloat while Caitlin Clark remains injured.
"I want to figure out how [the Fever] can survive without Caitlin Clark," Leslie said. She then posed this question to AI-assistant Microsoft Copilot (who sponsors Leslie's show) by writing in, "What adjustments do the Fever need to make to win games without Caitlin Clark?"
In reading the responses she received, Leslie said, "One, 'Push the pace and attack early'... Number two is, 'Own the paint'. Aliyah Boston must control the boards and establish dominance inside to stabilize possessions. And number three: 'Kelsey Mitchell needs to be the primary shot creator.'"
Leslie later added, "I think [the Fever's] ability to play in half-court and execute their offense, I think down the stretch, that will really play well for them. Because being able to fast break is one weapon, right? But being able to really execute your offense in the half court, I love the two-man game with Aliyah Boston.
"I'm not mad at Indiana. Obviously, when they get Caitlin Clark back, they'll be even better," she concluded.
It sounds like Leslie believes the Fever still have a good shot at beating the Sky, despite Clark being sidelined.
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Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the Indiana Fever and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.
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