Fever dealt another blow with head coach Stephanie White set to miss Sky clash
By ISABEL BALDWIN
Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White is set to miss the team's showdown against the Chicago Sky on Saturday night, according to a report.
The Fever will now be without both their head coach and superstar Caitlin Clark as the guard remains out injured.
White, 47, missed practice for personal reasons on Friday and didn't make the trip to Chicago with her status for Saturday's clash left in doubt.
While it was feasible that she could have followed the team to the Windy City at a later time, the IndyStar reported that the team confirmed White would miss the game.
Assistant coach Austin Kelly will serve as head coach, with assistants Karima Christmas-Kelly and Briann January set to step into bigger roles.
It is currently unclear how long White will be absent for but she has previously expressed a lot of faith in her staff.
Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White will miss tonight's showdown against the Chicago Sky
The Fever are also without superstar Caitlin Clark for the clash through injury
'My staff is so good and trusting in them that if I needed to be away for a period of time, it's status quo,' White told IndyStar ahead of the season.
'Our team knows that, they have great respect for them, and I know that, and I trust them implicitly, so it gives even more peace of mind.'
It is the first season of White's second stint as Indiana's head coach. She led the Fever from 2015-16 and returned after spending the past two seasons coaching the Connecticut Sun.
Kelly has worked with White for three years, having joined her staff in Connecticut in 2023 and following her to Indianapolis after she took the helm at the Fever.
Games between the Fever and Sky have had a charged atmosphere due to the rivalry between Clark and Chicago's Angel Reese that goes back to college.
However, the occasion was spoiled when it was confirmed Clark will also miss Saturday's game with a quadriceps injury.
Clark told reporters that the quad strain she suffered in her left leg in a game against the New York Liberty will be re-evaluated over the weekend.
If all goes well, Clark could possibly go back to playing for the Fever against Atlanta on Tuesday.
Clark told reporters that she suffered a quad strain in her left leg in a game against the Liberty
The Fever have been a shell of themselves since Clark went down with the injury four games ago - having lost two of three contests.
After falling to the Liberty, the Fever struggled against the Washington Mystics before being defeated in a close game by the Connecticut Sun - which picked up their first and only win of the season so far.
Indiana then beat the Mystics in the WNBA Commissioner's Cup on Tuesday night.
Clark's absence has seen the Fever lose ground in the Eastern Conference standings - now four games back of the Liberty and two games behind the Dream.
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