Fever Coach Stephanie White Addresses Kelsey Mitchell Staying in Indiana
When it came to offseason plans for the Indiana Fever it was "priority number one" to re-sign Kelsey Mitchell. Which makes sense since Mitchell combined with Caitlin Clark to form the most potent backcourt in the WNBA last season.
After Mitchell re-signed, new Fever coach Stephanie White emphasized just how significant it was to keep the All-Star guard in the fold (Mitchell has spent her entire professional career with the franchise).
“She’s such an important part of our plan as a staff and what we want to do on both ends of the floor," White said during a January 31 interview with Tony East. "She’s been such a great ambassador for this franchise, for the city, so it was priority number one to get her back.
"I’m excited to think about the X’s and O’s that we can have with her and [Clark] and [Boston] on the floor, our core three, and what we can do,” White added. "More than anything, just the person that she is to continue to be a representative and ambassador for our franchise."
Indiana Fever Coach Stephanie White talking about what it’s like to have Kelsey Mitchell back.
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White of course referenced Mitchell being part of that core foundation with her other star teammates in Clark and Aliyah Boston, but she didn't shy away from singling out what Kelsey brings to the team individually.
"She's a key cog in everything we do. Her ability to get down hill, her ability to knock down the three, to play in transition... she's gonna be a key in everything we do," White said.
The Fever coach is fortunate from a personnel standpoint in her return to Indiana. As the squad not only kept its aforementioned key piece, but continues to add to the roster as well. It will now be up to White to harness that talent and meet the feverish expectations in front of her.
-cd712889d85e43d2ff2d8e4ef3a0c114.jpeg "Samara Elster")
Samara Elster covers basketball for Women’s Fastbreak on SI. She has extensively covered a variety of the sports teams at Indiana University with a focus on the women's basketball team. Samara has experience as a beat reporter covering the ins and outs of a team and handling the stories that emerge from that role. Her concentration on sports journalism at IU combined with her enthusiasm for the media industry drove her to pursue a career covering sports.