Stephanie White had lots of praise for Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston in her first press conference

Stephanie White made one thing clear in her introductory presser as the new head coach of the Indiana Fever: she’s thrilled by the opportunity to coach stars Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston — and sees limitless potential for what the pairing back-to-back Rookies of the Year can accomplish long-term.

“These two are the best — there’s so many things that they do well right now… but there’s so much room for growth,” White said.

“When you think about the great point guards and post players that our game — not just our league — but our game has seen, they’re going to go down as the greatest.”

It’s a bold claim, but it’s one backed up by both All-Star’s on-court production thus far. Boston, the No. 1 pick in 2023, has averaged 14.2 point on 55.2% shooting in two seasons, grabbing 8.9 rebounds per game and elevating her play in the postseason.

Clark, the No. 1 pick in 2024, enjoyed a historic rookie campaign, averaging 19.2 points and a WNBA-record 8.4 assists per game. Clark’s record-setting campaign ranks among the most impressive in league history.

Together — and alongside the critical contributions of Kelsey Mitchell, Lexie Hull, and others — the Fever made the playoffs for the first time since 2017. Though they fell to the Connecticut Sun in the first round of the playoffs, White said that initial run will prove valuable long-term.

“There’s never a substitute for experience,” she said. “This is a young roster who gained valuable experience throughout the course of this season. Having playoff experience is so important. You just never know what you don’t know.”

Clark, Boston, and Hull were all in attendance for the introductory press conference. It certainly wasn’t their first time meeting White — all three faced her Sun team in the playoffs — but this time, the dynamic was vastly different.

“You’ve got incredibly talented players right here in Caitlin and Aliyah and Lexi — a team that was incredibly fun to watch, very tough to game-plan against,” White said, gesturing to the front row. “So I’m glad I’m going to be able to work with you guys, work with you ladies, instead of having to think about how to stop you.”

The Fever will grapple with a number of questions heading into next season, including whether Mitchell will be back, and what other role players they will re-sign or recruit. Notably, White named Hull — who averaged 5.5 points per game and shot 47.1% from three during the season — a core member of the team moving forward.

In order to surround and elevate the Fever’s returners, White said the priority would be to identify role players who are happy to play their roles around Clark, Boston, and Hull.

“Building quality depth is going to be important — when you have a core three like we have, surrounding them with players who are going to fill the roles, certainly, first and foremost, and who are going to embrace their roles secondly, and who give us the best opportunity for success by complementing what they do really, really well,” White said.

An Indiana Fever homecoming for Stephanie White

For Stephanie White, it’s well-chronicled that accepting the Indiana Fever head coaching was a return home. White coached the Connecticut Sun for the past two seasons, but has spent most of her basketball career in the Hoosier state.

“It’s going to be really hard for me to not get emotional today, but I think for all of these people, all these familiar faces in the building today, this is coming home for me,” White said. “It has been such an experience with this franchise for nearly 25 years — from Day 1. The opportunity to come home and to lead this young, exciting talented team.”

Kelly Krauskopf, who became the Fever’s president in October, said that the decision to let go of Christie Sides — who had coached the Fever for two seasons — was rooted in the desire to win as fast as possible.

“My challenge was: where do we need to make improvements? Where can we get better? And how do we expedite this process?” Krauskopf said. “Because, what I saw in the two years of watching where I sat, Christie Sides did a great job.”

But, Krauskopf was had a long-standing relationship with White, and had some initial conversations with her once she realized the decorated coach might be available and interested in a return.

“When I had the opportunity to talk to her, it was like fortuitous — something that I just couldn’t believe the timing,” Krauskopf said.

Sides was fired on October 27th. The next day, White formally parted ways with the Sun.

“The timeline was accelerated, to be honest,” Krauskopf said. “There was an opportunity to try and take experience, look at how can we maximize this group of young players, the resources we have to be successful, and move that forward. We had made a decision that we were going to move on and that was tough because it doesn’t take away from anything that Christie did and what that coaching staff did. And, to use her words, she left it better than she found it.”

For White, the transition from head coach of the Sun to the Fever was quick. Just a few hours after she was officially announced as the Indiana’s new head coach on Friday, she was calling a Cavaliers-Magic NBA game in her other job as an ESPN commentator.

“It feels like the stars just perfectly aligned,” White said. “So, while at times there’s anxiety through transition, there just hasn’t been for me. It’s been very calming, it feels perfect. This franchise has been a part of my DNA from Day One, and will always be. So, when things are meant to be, it feels really good.”

White also praised how the Fever’s ownership group has always invested in the organization.

“This is a franchise that for each moment in the league’s history, we’ve always had what we’ve needed to succeed,” White said. “And as the needle moves, and as things changed, and as they’ve continued to change so rapidly, we’ve kept up with that.”

A WNBA championship is the ultimate goal

Stephanie White has been around WNBA basketball long enough to know that it will take time to put the pieces together and actualize the core’s potential. But, she also wasn’t shy about clearly identifying the ultimate goal: a championship.

“We have seen in this league’s history how difficult it is to win a championship — the margin for error is small,” White said. “When you’re building teams, it’s not just about getting the best players, it’s about getting the best complement of players who fit together, who play well within one another, who work to bring the best out of one another.”

She feels confident this Fever group will get it done.

“The future is so bright, and our ultimate goal is to hang another banner in the Fieldhouse,” White said. “And our ultimate goal is to come back here after we win that championship and celebrate again like we did in 2012.”