“New is always better,” Barney Stinson from the popular series, ‘How I Met Your Mother’, did say that. But the latest Tissot Clocks rolled out in the WNBA have prove that it might not be true all the time. Just last week, the Indiana Fever’s on-road game against the Golden State Valkyries was marred by multiple clock stoppages. And now, the same blunder was repeated once again a week later in tonight’s Indiana Fever’s away game against the Washington Mystics.

This time, the game was halted after 6 minutes of play with the Fever leading 13-8. At least, it was an improvement over the Valkyries game, right? It could be because the Mystics aren’t playing at their regular CareFirst Arena tonight as they shifted both of their games against the Fever to a bigger stadium, the CFG Arena in Baltimore. CareFirst Arena seats just over 4,000 fans, while CFG Bank Arena seats around 11,000 people, making it a more attractive venue to host the popular Fever.

Questions around the arena are bound to come up, but that’s not the case. The arena is not underused, as at least 39 basketball games have been held at CFG Bank Arena over the past year. From Big3 basketball to Washington Mystics games, the arena is bustling with activity. But like we saw at the Golden State Warriors’ Chase Center, it can happen at any stadium.

Just two minutes into that game, chaos struck as a local power outage knocked out the shot clock. Play was halted for more than 20 minutes before officials finally rolled out makeshift baseline clocks to keep things going. There were five stoppages in play in the first half that ended up lasting 92 minutes. But how does this continue to happen with the Indiana Fever? It is a question many fans ask. Clock vs Indiana Fever stretches back to 2024.

The Fever squad was in their first postseason game in almost a decade, and the flow of their Game 1 was repeatedly interrupted by clock malfunctions. Caitlin Clark was visibly frustrated at the time, and she would be this year, too, despite being on the sidelines. And Indiana was in the lead, too, making the frustration much worse. While it might seem small, the errors impact momentum, and suddenly, Mystics were at Fever’s throats. The Indiana Fever finished the first quarter trailing 20-19. While that cannot be completely attributed to the interruption, that clock malfunction factor cannot be ignored.

Minor issues regarding the Indiana Fever can harm the WNBA’s credibility

There is no question that the WNBA has grown over the last year or so, along with the Indiana Fever. It is going from being in the bottom rungs of the American Sports scene to being the “fastest growing brand” in the country. Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever have played a huge role in that boom. Apart from the WNBA franchise, the city of Indiana is growing into a basketball hub. In 2025, the Pacers reached the NBA finals, and the WNBA All-Star Game was held at the Gaimbridge Fieldhouse, further underscoring their rise.

So the league cannot afford to make repeated blunders, especially when it comes to the Indiana Fever. A mistake like this is not a good look for a league like the WNBA, which is striving to find itself in any case, but the impact rises if it’s regarding the Indiana Fever or Caitlin Clark.

The WNBA being ‘not a real league’ is a popular narrative on social media, and they are trying to prove it wrong. Mistakes like these do not make its case, only giving trolls and haters the ammunition they need. Newer fans are likely to watch an Indiana Fever game, and such mistakes push them away. And it’s not limited to the clock stoppages either.

Fans and critics have gone after the league for failing to protect its players, especially Caitlin Clark. The league prides itself on its physicality, but it has already blown on its face. The absence of Clark has dimmed the lights on the 2025 playoffs, and it’s certain to affect the overall numbers. The league is starting an expansion, which will go on till 2030 at the latest, and fixing such issues could help them be better prepared for a longer season and more players.