Indiana Fever
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| Indiana Fever | |
 |
|
| Conference | Eastern Conference |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Arena | Conseco Fieldhouse |
| City | Indianapolis, Indiana |
| Team Colors | Blue, Red, Gold |
| Owner | Herbert and Melvin Simon [1] |
| General Manager | Kelly Krauskopf |
| Head Coach | Brian Winters |
| WNBA Championships | None |
| Conference Titles | None |
| Mascot | Freddy Fever [2] |
The Indiana Fever is a professional women's basketball team that plays in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Their first season of play in the league was in 2000. The team is the sister team of the NBA's Indiana Pacers.
Contents |
[edit] Franchise History
Since their inaugural season in 2000, the Indiana Fever have had a fast start as a WNBA franchise. In their first two seasons, they were coached by women's basketball legends Anne Donovan and Nell Fortner. Led by center Kara Wolters, their inaugural campaign was a losing one but they had high expectations after drafting University of Tennessee star Tamika Catchings in 2001. However, Catchings was injured for the entire season and the Fever missed the playoffs yet again. Even having a losing record they found their main rivals to be the New York Liberty and the Detroit Shock.
The 2002 season proved to be the breakout season for both the Fever and Tamika Catchings. Catchings proved to be one of the most versatile players in the WNBA, easily winning Rookie of the Year honors as well as making the WNBA All-Star team. The Fever would make their first playoff appearance in franchise history that year.
The seasons following the 2002 campaign were seasons of transition for the Fever. The team added Olympian Natalie Williams and Charlotte Sting star Kelly Miller before the 2003 season. Despite lofty expectations, the team failed to make the playoffs in 2003, leading to the resignation of original coach and GM Nell Fortner. Lead by new coach Brian Winters, they did not make the playoffs in 2004, but in 2005, they earned their first playoff series win over the New York Liberty, the team that had defeated them in the first round of the 2002 playoffs. They then went on to play the Connecticut Sun in the Eastern Conference Finals but fell short to the favored Sun 2-0.
The 2006 season was a big year for the Fever, adding former All-Star Anna DeForge from the Phoenix Mercury then folloing up with another All-Star addition Tamika Whitmore. In the draft they selected swing-man La'Tangela Atkinson from University of North Carolina along with Kasha Terry from Georgia Tech University. That season the Fever led the WNBA in total defense and steals. Teammates Tamika Catchings and Tully Bevilaqua led the league in steals 1 & 2 respectively. They made the playoffs for a 2nd straight year as the 3rd seed. The season fell short when they lost 2-0 to the eventual champion the Detroit Shock in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. They also made a new rival that season, the Chicago Sky, called the "I-65" rivalry.
In the 2006 off-season the Fever were displeased with their shortfall and added a defensive minded swing-forward Sheri Sam and a strong lost post presence Tammy Sutton-Brown from the disbanded Charlotte Sting. Adding 2 more All-Stars brought the team to a total of 4 All-Stars.
[edit] Season-by-Season records
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, % = Win-Loss %
| Season | W | L | % | Playoffs | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana Fever | |||||
| 2000 | 9 | 23 | .281 | ||
| 2001 | 10 | 22 | .313 | ||
| 2002 | 16 | 16 | .500 | Lost First Round | New York 2, Indiana 1 |
| 2003 | 16 | 18 | .471 | ||
| 2004 | 15 | 19 | .441 | ||
| 2005 | 21 | 13 | .618 | Won First Round Lost Conference Finals |
Indiana 2, New York 0 Connecticut 2, Indiana 0 |
| 2006 | 21 | 13 | .618 | Lost First Round | Detroit 2, Indiana 0 |
| Totals | 108 | 124 | .466 | ||
| Playoffs | 3 | 6 | .333 | ||
Stats updated August 20, 2006
[edit] Uniforms
The home jerseys are white with red, dark blue and yellow on the sides. Fever logo text on the chest. On the road, dark blue with red and yellow on the sides. State name in red letters trimmed with white on the chest.
[edit] Players of note
[edit] Hall of Famers
none
[edit] Retired numbers
none
[edit] Not to be forgotten
- La'Tangela Atkinson
- Coretta Brown, now an administrative assistant for the women's basketball team at Georgia Tech
- Gordana Grubin
- Sonja Henning
- Niele Ivey
- Deanna Jackson
- Nadine Malcolm
- Monica Maxwell, now an assistant coach at Cal State Northridge
- Stephanie McCarty
- Nikki McCray
- Danielle McCulley
- Kelly Miller
- Bridget Pettis
- Kristen Rasmussen
- Kelly Schumacher
- Olympia Scott
- Charlotte Smith, retired 2006
- Jurgita Streimikyte
- Alicia Thompson
- Chantel Tremitiere
- Coquese Washington
- Stephanie White, now an assistant coach at University of Toledo
- Natalie Williams. retired 2005
- Rita Williams
- Kara Wolters
[edit] Current roster
| Indiana Fever Current Roster |
||||
| Head Coach: Brian Winters | Edit | |||
| Pos. | No. | Name | College | |
| G | 41 | Tully Bevilaqua | Australia | |
| F | 24 | Tamika Catchings | Tennessee | |
| G | 30 | Anna DeForge | Nebraska | |
| F | 13 | Linda Frohlich | UNLV | |
| C | 32 | Ebony Hoffman | USC | |
| G-F | 2 | Sheri Sam | Vanderbilt | |
| G | 3 | K.B. Sharp | Cincinnati | |
| F | 43 | Ann Strother | Connecticut | |
| F | 8 | Tammy Sutton-Brown | Rutgers | |
| C | 35 | Kasha Terry | Georgia Tech | |
| G | 15 | Tan White | Mississippi State | |
| F | 91 | Tamika Whitmore | Memphis | |
| (IL) - Inactive List | ||||
[edit] Coaches and others
Head Coaches:
- Anne Donovan (2000) (Hall of Famer), now coaches the Seattle Storm of the WNBA.
- Nell Fortner (2001-2003), now coaches the women's team at Auburn University
- Brian Winters (2004-Present)
[edit] External links
| Eastern Conference | Western Conference |
|---|---|
| Chicago Sky | Connecticut Sun | Detroit Shock | Indiana Fever | New York Liberty | Washington Mystics | Houston Comets | Los Angeles Sparks | Minnesota Lynx | Phoenix Mercury | Sacramento Monarchs | San Antonio Silver Stars | Seattle Storm |
| Defunct teams: Charlotte Sting | Cleveland Rockers | Miami Sol | Portland Fire | |
| Media: WNBA on ESPN | List of WNBA Finals broadcasters | |
| Other Women's Leagues: National Women's Basketball League | Women's National Basketball League (Australia) | |
