What’s next for Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston after the Fever playoff elimination against Sun?

UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Head coach Christie Sides sat at the podium shortly after the Indiana Fever’s elimination with one clear message: the loss of Game 2 was nothing for Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston and the rest of the Fever to be ashamed of. In back-to-back postseason losses to the veteran-laden Connecticut Sun, her young squad left everything on the ground.

“We’re all competitors in that locker room, so it doesn’t feel good to leave here and not have the opportunity to get another chance, a chance to move forward,” Sides said after the 87-81 loss. “But the resilience these guys have shown all year long — gosh, give Connecticut credit, right? They are a very good team. I’m proud of these guys for the way we played on Sunday. They took advantage of that and really did what we asked of them tonight – and gave ourselves a chance to win.”

The Fever’s season was headlined by record-breaking Clark in one of the most impressive rookie campaigns ever, but it also featured a plethora of other storylines, including Kelsey Mitchell’s career year, Boston’s all-around sophomore leap and Lexie Hull’s emergence as a crucial role. player. Indiana was able to overcome a historically brutal schedule that led to a 1-8 start, and finished the season with a post-Olympic record of 9-5 to secure the No. 6 seed in the WNBA playoffs to set.

“It was special. This group has accomplished a lot of things that people didn’t think were possible after the start of the season,” said Clark. “It’ll definitely be a little weird for the first few weeks, but then I’ll get bored and go back to playing basketball.”

In the end, experience won. In the Game 2 loss, Indiana was unable to defeat a balanced veteran team that saw contributions from an array of players, including 19 points from Alyssa Thomas, a three-point shot from Marina Mabrey and a late game win. baskets from veteran DeWanna Bonner. DiJonai Carrington, fresh off a Most Improved Player-winning season, was productive at both ends, while Olivia Nelson-Ododa and Veronica Burton were key players off the bench.

For Indiana, Clark bounced back from a tough Game 1 with 25 points and 9 assists, while Boston dominated in the post. The Fever’s 2023 No. 1 pick scored 17 points and 11 rebounds in Game 1, and followed that with a 16-point, 19-rebound performance.

“Obviously you never want to lose, especially when you have a chance to go home and they want more games,” Boston said. “It really sucks. But I guess I can just get a taste of this playoff feeling…” she trailed off, seemingly thinking about getting another chance in the postseason.

‘I mean, it’s an experienced team. They make the right measurements and hit some hard shots.”

Still, it would be difficult to characterize Indiana’s season as anything other than successful. Clark was asked to rate her performance and noted that she was happy overall, but recognized that she still had a lot of room to grow.

“I am a hard student. I feel like I had a solid year,” Clark said. “For me, the nice thing about it is that I feel like I’m just scratching the surface and I’m the one who decides everything I do. I know I want to help this franchise… I know there’s a lot of room for me to continue to improve, so that’s what excites me the most. I feel like I’m getting better and better.”

Kelsey Mitchell, who had a tough postseason after a great regular season, will be a free agent this summer. Whether Indiana will be able to keep her — or acquire other impact players — is a key question this offseason. Mitchell has previously stated that she would explore free agency, and as the team’s second-leading scorer and veteran leader, her loss would be huge.

Hull, meanwhile, is signed until 2025, while veteran Erica Wheeler, like Mitchell, is a free agent. Clark and Boston, the Fever’s youngest two players, are both under contract for the foreseeable future; Boston until 2026, and Clark until 2027. That duo alone is promising enough that no matter who else is around them, the Fever should be competitive.

Both Clark and Boston are only 22 years old and have both proven themselves to be formidable forces in their respective positions. Clark has especially thrived when surrounded by 3-and-D players (like Kate Martin at Iowa and Lexie Hull at Indiana) and the Fever could explode in free agency to try to secure such a player. Indiana also has its three 2024 draft picks, although the exact placements have yet to be determined. An ESPN mock draft projected Indiana to land the No. 8 pick.

In the short term, neither Clark nor Boston have publicly shared offseason plans, with Clark even joking that she might consider starting a golf career: “I don’t know what I’m going to do tomorrow, I don’t know.” where I’m going the next day. Maybe play a little golf. I think I’ll do that until it gets too cold in Indiana. I’m going to be a professional golfer.”

Boston, who has only a year of experience as a professional, maintained a grand perspective on the podium.

“When I look at how far we’ve come from the (early) end of the season so far, I’m just super proud of our group, because I think they’re such a special twelve (players), and I can’t wait to watch what the future holds,” she said.

Despite all the success they had this season, the Indiana Fever never had a great shot at a championship. The Sun have made the semifinals seven straight seasons and had a total of 222 postseason games of experience heading into the first-round matchup with the Fever.

“When you look at a rebuilding year, obviously everyone wants to jump to the championships and take home the ring and everything,” Boston said. “But I think when you look at basketball as a whole and when you look at where you start to where you are now, it’s about stepping stones.”

Clark acknowledged that coming so close made the elimination even more painful, but also echoed Boston and Side’s optimism.

“It’s a great taste of what’s possible for this organization and for this franchise,” Clark said. “There is a lot we can hold our heads high about. This team won five games two years ago. We’re a young group, a pretty inexperienced group, and we came together and had a lot of fun playing with each other, and sometimes that’s the worst part: you feel like you’re really playing your best basketball, and then it has to end. But this group stayed resilient all year and had a lot of fun together.”

A few months ago, as Caitlin Clark walked off the stage after her Iowa team lost to South Carolina in the NCAA championship, she was in tears, knowing a chapter of her life had ended.

This time, Clark radiated a lightness that reflected that she knew the situation was very different: this chapter was just beginning.