The Indiana Fever are Caitlin Clark’s team. She is the WNBA’s most popular figure, and many consider her to be the team’s best player. During her absence in 2025 due to a season-ending injury, however, one Indiana player shone brighter than ever.
Kelsey Mitchell led the Fever in scoring after Clark played only 13 games due to a groin injury. The veteran scorer averaged 20.2 points on 45.6% shooting overall. She also shot 39.4% from deep, further highlighting her ability to score from long range.
Advertisement
The 29-year-old guard finished in the top five in MVP voting. More than that, she anchored the injury-riddled Fever in the playoffs, leading them all the way to the semifinals where they forced the eventual champions Las Vegas Aces to a do-or-die Game 5.
Amid the offseason, as the Fever look back on the year their players had, they shared a number of tribute posts honoring Mitchell to acknowledge he accomplishments. Aside from sharing her stats and a highlight reel describing her as the “ultimate competitor,” the team also shared additional praise for her.
In a separate post, the Fever called Mitchell the “hardest player in the league to guard.”
Advertisement
No other guard has averaged more points than Mitchell during the 2025 season, so there’s definitely a ton of merit to the Fever’s claim.
For what it’s worth, even her competitors agree that Mitchell is one of the toughest players to defend against in the WNBA. In an interview last July, Los Angeles Sparks guard Kelsey Plum said as much and broke down what makes the Fever star a tough matchup for anyone else.
Indiana Fever’s Aliyah Boston (7), Caitlin Clark (22) and Kelsey Mitchell (0) take a photo before the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game.Christine Tannous/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
“You know who’s really hard to guard that doesn’t get enough flowers is Kelsey Mitchell,” Plum stated. “She’s so fast. She can stop on a dime. A lot of guards I feel like, are either one or the other. Like, they significantly prefer either to pull up outside or go to the rim. But she, I swear, it’s 50/50. You don’t know which way she’s going.”
Advertisement
Plum added, ““”And she’s fast as hell. I be stretching out way before the game.”
Related: Indiana Fever Guard Has ‘Coldest’ Message for Kelsey Mitchell
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Oct 16, 2025, where it first appeared in the WNBA section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
