Aliyah Boston Undergoes Knee Surgery After Fever Playoff Exit

The Indiana Fever said Thursday that forward Aliyah Boston had arthroscopic surgery a day earlier to repair the lateral meniscus in her right knee. OrthoIndy's Dr. Corey Kendall performed it.

Her rehabilitation runs through the Fever's medical and performance team. Indiana did not put a timeline on it Thursday, saying further updates "will be provided as they become available."

Thirteen days before the operation, Las Vegas ended Indiana's season with a 94-83 win in Game 3 of the first round at Michelob Ultra Arena. Boston put up 19 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.

Over the three-game series she shot 58.1% and averaged 19.7 points and 7.3 rebounds. In Game 2 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, a 99-89 Indiana win, she had 22 points on 10-of-15 shooting. Twenty of those came in the paint, where the Fever beat the Aces 58-26.

That right leg first gave her trouble in February. Boston got hurt in Phantom BC's final regular-season game of Unrivaled, the 3-on-3 league that plays during the WNBA offseason, after averaging 18.9 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks and winning the league's Defensive Player of the Year award.

Phantom entered the Unrivaled playoffs as the top seed and without her. Team USA went to the FIBA World Cup qualifiers in Puerto Rico in March without her too, and she sat out the Fever's first two preseason games.

By the time the Fever opened training camp in April, Boston was a full participant.

"I just had a lower leg injury, and right now I'm feeling good to go," Boston said, according to Tony East of The IX Sports.

Boston was voted an All-Star starter this season, her fourth selection in four seasons. She played five minutes in the All-Star Game.

Seattle's Flau'jae Johnson was on the other end of the collision July 28 at Climate Pledge Arena, when Boston rolled to the rim in the second quarter, met Johnson, and landed on her right kneecap.

Boston had 11 points when she went down, and she didn't add to them. At halftime, Indiana listed her as questionable with a right lower leg injury. She spent the rest of the night on the bench in a 105-95 Fever win.

Fever coach Stephanie White said Indiana did not want to take any chances with Boston in the second half.

"Wasn't really worth the risk for us in the second half," White said, according to Just Women's Sports. "Just want to be very conservative and make sure that she's good to go."

Boston also sat out games on July 8 and July 17, both on the front end of back-to-backs. The Fever ruled her out again Aug. 23 with a right lower leg injury and beat the Chicago Sky 113-90 at Wintrust Arena without her.

In the regular-season finale on Sept. 24, she checked out with a little less than three minutes left in the first half of an 86-66 loss to the Minnesota Lynx at Target Center and did not return.

White said it was a flare-up of the same injury, according to ESPN's Kareem Copeland.

Her regular-season line finished at 16.1 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 3.0 assists, with 52.8% shooting from the field and 40.6% from deep.

At 28-16, Indiana went into the playoffs as the sixth seed for a third year running.

The Fever drafted Boston first overall out of South Carolina in 2023. She was Rookie of the Year that summer, then put up 15.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in 2025 while landing on the All-WNBA and All-Defensive second teams and tying for sixth in the MVP vote.

On April 17, Boston agreed to a four-year, $6.3 million extension, according to ESPN's Alexa Philippou, Kendra Andrews, and Shams Charania.

ESPN called it the richest contract in league history, and the Fever confirmed a multiyear deal without releasing terms, The Associated Press reported.

Boston's 2026 salary is $1 million. She was eligible for $1.19 million and took less to help Indiana pay other players, ESPN reported.

Boston said at the time that she was grateful to continue her career in Indiana.

"I'm super blessed and grateful for this opportunity and to continue my journey here with the Fever," Boston said in a statement. "God is good!"

Hers was the first contract signed under the Exceptional Performance on Initial Contract provision, created in the new collective bargaining agreement so a team can renegotiate the final year of a qualifying player's rookie deal as part of a multiyear extension.

That 2025 All-WNBA selection is what made Boston eligible.

Fever general manager Amber Cox, who is also the team's chief operating officer, said Boston has only scratched the surface of the player she can become.

"Entering just her fourth season, Aliyah is already one of the best players in the WNBA," Cox said. "She's been a foundational piece of the Indiana Fever since she was drafted here in 2023. We're thrilled to be able to reward her with this new contract and make history, and most importantly, lock her in as a cornerstone of the Fever for years to come."

From 2027 through 2029, the deal pays her 20% of the Fever's salary cap each season.