Former Iowa star Caitlin Clark is being completely misused in Indiana's offensive system, and revoking a longtime reporter's credential was the icing on the cake.
When the Indiana Fever was awarded the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, they and the entire league finally had the golden ticket they were looking for.
Then-Iowa women's basketball superstar Caitlin Clark was plugged as the top selection in this draft long before she announced she would enter it.
Once the announcement was made, what happened on draft night was only a formality. After the Fever selected the global icon, the franchise and the WNBA immediately received unprecedented attention.
Indiana's social media following skyrocketed, as did ticket sales for the upcoming home schedule at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Wherever Clark played, the people followed, forcing some WNBA teams to move their home games to larger NBA venues.
With the momentum already rolling down the tracks, all the Fever and the league needed to do was let Clark do her thing and showcase her unbelievable talents that were always on full display with the Hawkeyes.
Through two full seasons, Indiana has done the exact opposite. Clark won Rookie of the Year honors and led the Fever to their first playoff appearance since 2016 during the 2024 campaign, but it's been all downhill since then.
An injury-riddled season followed in 2025. This was the first time in Clark's career that she had to miss time due to injury (she never missed a game during her Iowa career), but what has followed in the 2026 season so far has been an unmitigated disaster.
Clark has struggled to recapture her rhythm, which is expected after missing 28 games last year, but Indiana has done her no favors. Clark is one of the best point guards in the history of basketball, but head coach Stephanie White seemingly refuses to play Clark at her natural position.
Clark is at her best when she has the basketball in her hands at all times, not when she's playing off the ball. She can still make plenty of plays there, but it's a lot harder for her to escape double teams when she doesn't have the basketball.
Clark is clearly frustrated with her coach, and all of this came to a head on May 30 against the Portland Fire. Clark scored just six points in 22 minutes of action, capping off a 4-for-19 (21%) performance from the floor. According to ESPN, that's the worst two-game stretch of her career.
Clark and White were spotted having a rather animated discussion on the bench during a timeout, which ended with Clark getting up and standing behind her coach. Both women tried to downplay the incident a few days later, but there's no question there's some friction between the two.
Clark is good enough to battle through adversity like this, but that's just the beginning of Indiana's issues.
Scott Agness, a local Indianapolis reporter who runs the popular Subsack site Fieldhouse Files, revealed on June 2 that the Fever had revoked his credential. Agness was told by the team that it was because of his tweet reporting was Clark sitting out the May 20 home game against Portland due to injury.
The move was announced just a few hours before Indiana's game, meaning people that made long treks to Indianapolis just to see Clark play were out of luck.
I'm not criticizing Clark for sitting out here, though. That's her decision, and it shouldn't be anyone else's business. The real problem here is the Fever removing Agness' credential.
Agness has covered the team since 2013, when Indiana wasn't getting much media attention. You would think that's the perfect reporter for a team to maintain a great relationship with, but instead of admitting it shut down Clark for that game way too late, Indiana is cutting ties with Agness for doing his job. That's ridiculous and doesn't make a single ounce of sense.
The Fever had the opportunity to become one of the world's most popular sports franchises, but the daily discourse surrounding this team is anything but positive.
Indiana just can't get anything right.
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HawkeyeRoundtable publisher Brad Schultz has covered the Iowa Hawkeyes since 2023. To send him story ideas, scoops, or criticize his writing, reach him at [email protected]
