“Inspired by you, Kelz!” Lexie Hull said it best. Through the ups and the rebuilding, the one who’s quietly held it all together in Indy, it’s Kelsey Mitchell. While the young guns keep stealing headlines, we tend to forget who’s been the calm in this chaos. The one who has spent her entire eight-year career in Indiana. The one who steps up when the team’s hit by injuries. The one who never really left. After living through a 5-31 season in 2022, Kelsey’s bounce back has been inspiring, steady, consistent, and lowkey legendary. No surprise, she just hit another crazy milestone to back it all up.

Right after the All-Star break, Mitchell came out blazing against the Liberty, leading Indiana in points before Libs took over. And with shooting three threes, she became just the fourth player in WNBA history to drain 50+ threes in each of her first eight seasons. The only other names on that list are Diana Taurasi, Maya Moore, and Katie Smith. While she was officially cored for the first time only recently, Mitchell’s been lighting it up since day one. Drafted No. 2 overall in 2018, she came in hot and stayed that way.

Just look at the consistency:

2018 – 70 threes
2019 – 79
2020 – 56
2021 – 70
2022 – 72
2023 – 102
2024 – 109
2025 – 52 (and counting)

She led the team in scoring in five of those seasons (except her rookie year and 2024). Now, she’s a 3× All-Star playing arguably the best basketball of her career. This latest feat caught ESPN broadcaster Rebecca Lobo’s eye. “This is royalty,” she said of the club Mitchell just joined, “but there’s a reason she’s a little different in the last two seasons.” According to Lobo, Kelsey’s quicker, sharper, leaner, and it’s all thanks to a football trainer who’s got her cutting like a defensive back. “You’re gonna watch her and be like, ‘oh my god that’s different,’” Lobo added.

But it’s not just the shooting that’s improved. Mitchell’s game has leveled up across the board. She averaged 19.2 points last season with a true shooting percentage of 58.8% and, post-Olympic break, she was one of the league’s most efficient and consistent threats. With Clark drawing extra attention now, defenses can’t just swarm Mitchell anymore.

For the first time in years, she has space to operate and she’s thriving. Her usage rate has actually gone up. Even her defense has turned a corner. Back in 2022, it was rare to hear her speak up about it. Now, she’s helping lead those conversations. That’s growth.

Lobo even joked that her way of cutting and moving off that ball is a “little DB [Defensive back]. I think the Colts [Indy’s football team] need to sign her to some action,” the broadcaster added. Would you even doubt it? But the Fever know what they’ve got. Mitchell is just the fifth player the franchise has ever cored – joining names like Tamika Catchings and Candice Dupree. They’re not letting her go, even in a hypothetical situation. She’s their center of gravity.

Especially right now, with Clark out and the team struggling to stay afloat.

Jonquel Jones’ return spoils Kelsey Mitchell’s 29-point night

Jonquel Jones is back and the Liberty wasted no time reminding the league why that matters. After missing nine straight games with a nagging ankle sprain, the 2021 MVP made her return Tuesday night. And while it wasn’t the smoothest start, by the end of it, she had led New York to a 98-84 comeback win over a Clark-less Indiana Fever squad.

Still, the Fever didn’t roll over. In fact, they came in swinging. Without their star, they took a surprising 46-42 lead into halftime. Things only got better late in the third as Indiana went up 67-60. But here’s where it all unraveled. The Fever went completely cold – like scoreless for nearly five minutes cold – and the Liberty pounced.

Jones, who had missed six straight shots after hitting a quick opening three, suddenly caught fire. She knocked down back-to-back triples and powered a 9-0 Liberty run to close the third quarter. Just like that, Indiana’s seven-point lead flipped into a 69-67 edge for New York. It didn’t stop there, though. New York stretched that run to 13-0 early in the fourth before Indiana finally got a point on the board with a Natasha Howard free throw. But by then, the Liberty were up 73-66, and they never looked back.

Jones finished with 18 points and nine rebounds, leading her team in both categories in her first game back. Her impact on both ends was the steadying force the Liberty needed after a few rocky weeks. Meanwhile, for Indiana, this marked the 12th game Caitlin Clark has missed this season due to a groin injury. She sat out All-Star weekend and remains a question mark for the second half of the regular season. And while Kelsey Mitchell has stepped up in her absence, the Fever haven’t been able to hold it together late in games and fans demand answers. Not the kind Coach Stephanie White gave before the matchup. 

Tuesday night was another case of that. Strong start, promising lead, then collapse without their engine. The question now is.. how long can they afford to wait for Clark to return?