INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana feverLast season’s goal: make the playoffs.
Behind Kelsey Mitchell, Aliyah Boston and Caitlin Clark, they achieved that and more, exiting the No. 6 seed in the eight-team playoff and finishing with a .500 record for the first time since 2016 .Now after reaching the playoffs. for the first time in eight years, they are aiming higher.
“We want to play for championships,” Fever general manager Lin Dunn said. “And so being able to see this team go in three years from five to 13 to 20 (wins), having fans hanging from the rafters, and I mean hanging from the rafters, in sold out arenas, not only at home, but on the road, it means everything to me. »
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There is optimism about the future of the franchise. And they want that future to include Mitchell.
“She’s a fixture here, and we want her here,” coach Christie Sides said. “To me, she’s a Hall of Famer.”
Mitchell, 28, spent her entire seven-year WNBA career with the Fever. She was the one who saw the ups and downs, the multiple coaching changes, the losing seasons and the struggle to get back to the playoffs. And she’s been consistent through it all.
Mitchell was the Fever’s leading scorer in all but two seasons; she was Indiana’s second-leading scorer as a freshman in 2018, then finished with 767 points in the regular season this year to Clark’s 769. She’s the consistent scorer and veteran presence the Fever needs.
“Kelsey Mitchell is one of the keys to us getting to the level that Lin talks about, you know, playing for championships,” Sides said. “She’s so important. Her growth over the last two years on the basketball court, on both ends of the court, has been just incredible.”
Mitchell has been through a lot in 2024; her father, Mark, died suddenly in March at age 56. She was extremely close to him and he was her coach throughout her childhood and during her college years at Ohio State. Her father was the person she always talked to about basketball, whether she played a good game or a bad game.
After the death of her father, Mitchell returned to her hometown of Cincinnati to visit her mother as much as possible throughout training camp and the regular season. Cincinnati is just a two-hour drive from Indianapolis, which means Mitchell could often make the drive for a day trip or quick overnight visit.
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“My dad prepared me every step of the way,” Mitchell said in June. “I can walk into any atmosphere, any circumstance, and be able to come out smelling like fresh air, and that’s because of my dad. Anything you throw at me, I relieves.”
Mitchell had one of the best years of her career in 2024. Named an All-Star for the second straight season, she posted a franchise record seven straight 20+ point games coming out of the Olympic break this season, and she averaged 19.2 points. per game.
She is an unrestricted free agent heading into the offseason. Mitchell negotiated a three-year contract extension in 2021 for a total of $618,000, which expired after the 2024 season. The time has passed for Fever and Mitchell to sign another contract extension; this had to be done before the last day of the regular season, September 19.
Now that free agency is potentially on the way, Mitchell says she has to make the best decision for herself.
“I think everything is so new to me that I don’t know what I need and what I’m going to do, but I know that when the time comes and the opportunity presents itself for me, I will make those decisions. “Mitchell said. “Obviously, I’ve always had a house in Indy, so this could potentially be a home for me again, but I think right now, with my family changing dynamics and everything, I have to do what I ‘It’s best for me It’s not the case I hang my hat on one team or another, but I think it’s specifically for me, I have to be selfish about this process. .
For now, she doesn’t know how this process will unfold. WNBA free agency doesn’t officially start until January, when teams can contact players and negotiate.
Mitchell is also eligible to be drafted by the Fever, which is similar to the NFL’s franchise tag. WNBA teams can sign one departing unrestricted free agent per offseason cycle, but players cannot be signed for more than two seasons total. Because Mitchell agreed to a contract extension in 2021, she was never cut.
“We always talk about the future,” Dunn said of Mitchell’s contract before the Fever’s second playoff game. “We’re still talking about who we should keep, what contracts we should negotiate. Of course, that’s ongoing.”
By cutting Mitchell, the Fever would automatically agree to give him a one-year supermax contract, which was worth $241,984 in 2024, according to Her Hoop Stats. Mitchell and Fever could negotiate a longer contract or a different salary than the base designation, but that gives Fever exclusive negotiating rights.
The supermax wouldn’t be a big jump from Mitchell’s 2024 salary, which was $212,000. With current roster construction and outgoing free agents on Indiana’s side, Indiana could afford a $30,000 salary increase. However, major designations will not take place until January.
So it’s a waiting game for Mitchell — and for fans who want her back in a Fever jersey.
“When I know, you’ll know,” Mitchell added with a smile.
This article was originally published on the Indianapolis Star: WNBA free agency: Indiana Fever star Kelsey Mitchell undecided on her future
