Indiana Fever center Damiris Dantas had surgery Monday to repair a torn meniscus in her left knee and will miss the rest of the 2026 season.
Indiana Fever center Damiris Dantas will miss the rest of the 2026 WNBA season. Dantas had surgery Monday to repair a torn meniscus in her left knee, the team announced Tuesday.
Fever coach Stephanie White described the sequence that led to the operation in comments reported by Tony East of The IX Sports.
"The first part of the process is just rehab, to see if you can minimize symptoms and get stronger and eliminate some of the effects," White said. "When you go through rehab and you don't get the desired effects, then you take the next step. The next step was the surgery consultation and ultimately the surgery."
Dantas, 33, re-signed with Indiana as a free agent last offseason on a two-year deal. This is her third season with the organization.
Through her appearances this year, Dantas averaged 3.3 points and 1.5 rebounds in 8.2 minutes per game and shot 40.6% from the field. The scoring average is a career low. Her minutes are down from roughly 11 per game across her previous two seasons in Indiana. In 2025, she averaged 4.6 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 11.6 minutes and shot 34.8% from the floor and 26.3% from 3-point range.
Minnesota drafted Dantas 12th overall in 2012. She has averaged 6.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 1.4 assists on 41.7% shooting across 11 WNBA seasons. The Brazilian center also played for Atlanta before joining Indiana. She has represented Brazil at the Olympics, including the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Behind starting center Aliyah Boston, the Fever have Myisha Hines-Allen and Makayla Timpson available for frontcourt minutes. Rookie Michelle Onyiah is on a development contract. Boston is averaging 17.1 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game, all career highs, and was voted an All-Star starter for the fourth time in four seasons. The WNBA trade deadline has passed, leaving free agency as the route to a replacement.
Indiana is 19-11 and holds first place in the Eastern Conference, a half-game ahead of Atlanta. The Fever have won seven of their last 10 games. They closed last week 2-1 with wins at Seattle and Portland and a 108-100 loss at Minnesota on Sunday.
Caitlin Clark was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week on Tuesday for games played July 28 through Aug. 2, her third such award of the season. Kelsey Mitchell took the award in Week 8. Clark, Mitchell, and Boston all started the All-Star Game in Chicago on July 25.
The Fever host Las Vegas on Thursday at 7 p.m. ET at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Indiana has beaten the Aces twice this season, 84-68 on July 5 and 109-75 on July 12, both in Las Vegas.
Fourteen games remain on the Fever's regular-season schedule. They play at Chicago on Saturday and host New York on Aug. 11.
