Ever since Stephanie White took over as head coach of the Indiana Fever, anticipation has circled around her vision for the team. On the Good Follow podcast, she emphasized wanting Aliyah Boston to be the “hub.” In their recent 108–44 win over Brazil, Boston dished five assists—mirroring Caitlin Clark’s total—while the team put up 78 field goal attempts and 33 threes, tallying 25 assists and 17 fast-break points. It was a textbook example of run-and-gun basketball. As analysts celebrated, White wasn’t buying the hype.
In her May 7 media availability, White candidly addressed the Fever’s preseason form:
“Yeah, I think some of our rotations defensively… we had some missed rotations. We had some poor closeouts and certainly securing defensive rebounds… we did not do a good job… Offensively, just continuing to work our spacing and our pacing… sometimes we were on top of one another.”
Her concerns weren’t baseless. In their first preseason game against the Mystics—played without Clark due to a left leg injury—the Fever pulled off a win, but their 30.3% shooting and poor spacing reflected exactly what White pointed out. Despite Clark’s absence, Aliyah Boston had 8 rebounds and 3 assists, but offensive fluidity was inconsistent.
They seemed to fix things in their second preseason game against Brazil. With two assist hubs on the floor and a quartet threat of Howard, Bonner, Mitchell, and Clark attacking the basket, the offense clicked. Boston anchored the paint and doubled as an assist center. Still, Coach White wasn’t fully satisfied.
Yet, the buzz only grew louder. Veteran sports host Jason Whitlock claimed, “Holy moly, this is a championship team that they put together around Caitlin Clark… it’s got a little Boston Celtics, Larry Bird, white girl, exciting whites type of appeal.”
That blend of old-school excitement and new-age firepower has fans dreaming big. But White’s grounded critique reminds everyone that, in basketball, chemistry isn’t built overnight—even with a generational star like Clark on the court.
Clark Comes Home, and the Nation Shows Up
However, for now, Iowa and the WNBA are drunk on the Clark effect. Caitlin Clark’s return to Carver-Hawkeye Arena wasn’t just a game—it was a homecoming wrapped in hype, nostalgia, and a televised spectacle that shook up the preseason record books. As the Indiana Fever faced Brazil’s national team, Clark’s college court became the epicenter of a cultural moment, and the nation tuned in.
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) is announced ahead of a WNBA preseason game against the Brazil National Team May 4, 2025 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa.
The game averaged 1.3 million viewers on ESPN, peaking at 1.6 million—making it the third-most-watched preseason basketball game, NBA or WNBA, since 2010. “Since 2010, only two NBA preseason games outrated this one,” noted Hall of Famer Rebecca Lobo. One of them? LeBron James’ iconic Lakers debut on October 10, 2018, which drew an average of 2.02 million viewers.
And it wasn’t just about screens. 15,000 fans packed Carver-Hawkeye Arena, with resale ticket prices averaging $440. The WNBA itself captured the moment best on X : “15k showed up. 1.3M tuned in. The Indiana Fever’s preseason game at Iowa did not disappoint.”
This wasn’t just a preseason exhibition—it was a cultural moment. Clark’s return drew bigger numbers than most regular-season games and outperformed ESPN’s 2024 WNBA season average by 13%. For the Fever, it was a dominant performance; for women’s basketball, it was another signpost that the ceiling keeps rising.
With the Fever’s final preseason game against the Atlanta Dream just around the corner, the message is clear: the Caitlin Clark effect is very real—and it’s only gaining steam.
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