Caitlin Clark and Indiana Fever qualify for WNBA playoffs

What was already a landmark 2024 season for guard Caitlin Clark got even better on Wednesday, as the Indiana Fever qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2016, ending the franchise’s seven-season postseason drought, which was tied for the longest in WNBA history.

Clark, the No. 1 draft pick and favorite to win WNBA Rookie of the Year, and the Fever advanced to the postseason despite being absent Tuesday thanks to Las Vegas’ 90-71 win over Chicago and Phoenix’ 74-66 victory over Atlanta.

Indiana, which is 17-16 on Sunday and has a winning record for the first time since June 2019, is sixth in the WNBA, which sends eight teams to the playoffs.

Seven of the spots are now filled, as Phoenix, 17-17, also earned a playoff spot on Tuesday after missing the postseason last year for the first time since 2012. Chicago and Atlanta, both 11-22, are battling for the final spot with Washington, which beat Dallas 90-86 on Tuesday, now 10-23.

New York, Connecticut, Minnesota, Las Vegas and Seattle had previously earned a spot in the play-offs.

Earlier this year, Clark became the all-time leading scorer in Division I basketball history and played in her second straight national championship to close out her career at Iowa. She then joined Aliyah Boston, the 2023 No. 1 overall pick and Rookie of the Year, at Indiana.

Since the Fever’s first media day in May, Clark has talked about the Fever’s main goal this season: making the playoffs for the first time since her career ended in 2016.

Before the drought, the Fever had made the playoffs 12 straight years, including winning the WNBA championship in 2012. But five of the last seven seasons, the Fever had single-digit win rates. Attendance fell in 2022, when Indiana went 5-31.

Under first-year coach Christie Sides and with the addition of South Carolina star Boston last year, the Fever improved to 13-27. Then the Fever won the draft lottery again, getting Clark.

Boston and Clark and a pair of No. 2 picks, Kelsey Mitchell (2018, from Ohio State) and NaLyssa Smith (2022, from Baylor), are Indiana’s starting core this season. The Fever got off to a slow 1-8 start but found their stride. They were 11-15 at the Olympic break and have gone 6-1 since WNBA play resumed.

Mitchell leads Indiana in scoring (18.0), followed by Clark (18.7), Boston (13.4) and Smith (11.1). Clark leads the WNBA in assists (8.4), and Boston (9.0) ranks in the league’s top 10 in rebounding.

Indiana has seven games left, six of them at home at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, starting Wednesday against Los Angeles. The Fever have led the WNBA in attendance this season, drawing huge crowds at home and on the road.

The Fever are only the second team in WNBA history to reach the playoffs after starting the season 1-8 or worse. The Charlotte Sting, who disbanded after the 2006 season, reached the WNBA Finals in 2001 after starting the season 1-8, losing to Los Angeles.