Winsidr • March 31 2023

First On the Clock... 2023 Mock GM Draft

Another March Madness is winding down, and, around the corner, the WNBA Draft looms. On April 10, a new class of W hopefuls will assemble their fanciest fits and head to Spring Studios in New York City, anticipating a moment they’ve spent years preparing for, when Commissioner Cathy Engelbert steps to the podium and calls their name.

While most draft science is theoretical, we’re in the middle of a chaotic few years that make this exercise even more volatile to predict. The COVID-19 waiver, whi

Winsidr • January 15 2023

Free Agency Preview — Eastern Conference

With free agency just around the corner, the WNBA offseason is heating up. Half a dozen coaches have traded team-branded polos and shuffled around, so there’s even more potential for chaos than even initially anticipated. Tantalizing talents twinkle atop mock draft boards, adding further intrigue as cap-strapped GMs attempt to piece together a roster that can compete with the defending champs in Las Vegas. It’s a twelve-way game of chess, where each team can only see their own board.

In order t

Winsidr • July 28 2022

NaLyssa Smith Is Bearing Down, Flashing Growth in Rookie Season

Indiana Fever rookie NaLyssa Smith has a history of buckling up, rising to the occasion, and never backing down. Smith did so in college, averaging over 20.0 points a game and leading Baylor to a 28-7 record in the 2021-22 regular season. Now in the WNBA, Smith is continuing to stand up to one arduous task after another, evolving before our eyes.

There’s no sugarcoating it: Indiana’s season has spiraled out of control. After starting the year 2-2, the Fever sputtered to a 5-19 record on the sea

Winsidr • July 19 2022

Power Rankings: Volume 5

Welcome back to another edition of the Winsidr Power Rankings! Since our last check-in, we’ve hit the All-Star break, which featured a ton of great W memories, none bigger than Sylvia Fowles’ dunk in her final All-Star Game. The league did well to honor both Syl and Sue Bird in their final appearances. The weekend also showcased a touching tribute to illegally detained Brittney Griner—during the game’s second half, each player’s jersey was adorned with Griner’s name and number, her absence palpa

Winsidr • June 20 2022

Power Rankings: Volume 4

Welcome back to another edition of the Winsidr Power Rankings. The Las Vegas Aces continue their dominant run through the regular season, dropping just two of their first 14 contests. With just five teams over .500 at this juncture, the last three playoff spots are in play for more than half the league. As of yesterday, both the Aces and Chicago Sky clinched spots in the 2022 Commissioner’s Cup, the last two teams standing for the exhibition worth approximately $500,000 in prize money ($30k+ to

Winsidr • June 7 2022

Power Rankings: Volume 3

You blinked and we’re a month into the WNBA season! Sure, some of that frenetic pacing might be because off-days were sandwiched around all twelve teams playing within four hours of one another, but scheduling aside, it’s been a fun start to the season. Every night shuffles the standings: at this writing, teams three through seven are each separated by just a half-game. The Commissioner’s Cup has not been quite as competitive: the Las Vegas Aces (6-0) and the Chicago Sky (5-0) remain unbeaten as

Winsidr • June 4 2022

Indiana Rebuilding at a Feverish Pace

Just four months ago, it looked like the Indiana Fever were stuck. In previous years, Indiana doled out huge contracts to aging role players, failed to develop its draft picks, and sparked little excitement from fans with its front office and coaching staff.

But in the short time since that dismal point in franchise history, the organization has worked feverishly to deliver Indiana from purgatory.

Although her time as general manager won’t be held in high regard, franchise GOAT Tamika Catching

Winsidr • May 19 2022

Power Rankings: Volume 2

We’re a few weeks into the WNBA season, and we’ve already got our share of surprises. Last year’s third seed, the Minnesota Lynx, took the longest to notch their first tally in the win column, though they do lead the league in roster transactions. This rookie class is already making itself known, highlighted by top picks Rhyne Howard of the Atlanta Dream and NaLyssa Smith of the Indiana Fever, both of whom have their squads off to better starts than anticipated. Parity reigns! No team made it th

Winsidr • May 4 2022

Power Rankings: Volume 1 - Preseason

This Friday, the WNBA is back. Of course, that means we’re back, too, with this year’s first set of Power Rankings!

If this is your first time reading our rankings, welcome; if it’s not, welcome back! As a refresher for how this works, you’re not just reading my takes, but the averages of where the entire Winsidr staff believe the teams shake out. Throughout the season, we will periodically poll our staff to aggregate where we think each team currently stands in comparison to how they’ve perfor

Winsidr • April 7 2022

First on the clock… Staff Mock GM Draft 2022

After Dawn Staley and her South Carolina Gamecocks cut down the nets this past Monday night, the exciting college season came to a close. The baton handoff will be completed on Monday, April 11, when the WNBA Draft elevates those eligible collegiate stars to the pros. For the first time since before the pandemic, the draft will be held in person, so you’ll get the full Orange Carpet treatment this year (though we’ll likely be robbed of any heartwarming grandmother moments, like the Onyenwere mat

Winsidr • January 31 2022

From Mediocre to Purgatory: A Feverish Downward Spiral

At the onset of 2022 free agency, the Indiana Fever waived guard Kysre Gondrezick, the fourth overall pick in the 2021 Draft. While Gondrezick showed some promise in her rookie season, few draft experts had the West Virginia product as a first-round selection, let alone a top-five pick. Gondrezick averaged just 1.9 points per game (PPG) on 28.3 percent shooting in 19 appearances before missing the latter part of the season on personal leave.

Gondrezick was taken two selections before Rookie of

Winsidr • September 3 2021

Power Rankings: Volume 7

Welcome back to the latest edition of the Winsidr Power Rankings! We’re in the home stretch now, with an intense battle for seeding happening up and down the standings. The top two teams earn a coveted double-bye, while the #3 and #4 seeds have to play a single elimination game to hit the semis. The #5 through #8 seeds, of course, must win two one-and-dones to advance to a series. These next few weeks will be chaotic, as teams continue to jockey for position.

As a refresher, we poll our staff t

Winsidr • August 31 2021

Fever Moving in Mysterious Ways, Competing in Spite of Injury Bug

It’s a new day in Indiana. Following a horrid start to the season, the Fever have won four of their last seven games and feel like a completely rejuvenated team despite a slew of injuries. The Fever lost Bernadett Határ, Chelsey Perry, Jantel Lavender, Jessica Breland, Kysre Gondrezick and Tiffany Mitchell (all for various periods of time), yet Indiana was rolling up until a blowout loss against the contending Las Vegas Aces.

At the forefront of the Fever’s recent success is the three-game win

Winsidr • August 13 2021

Power Rankings: Volume 6

Welcome back to the latest edition of the Winsidr Power Rankings! After taking a month off for the midseason Olympics break—hard to believe it’s already been a month!—we’re back for the stretch run. As a refresher, we poll our staff to aggregate where we think each team currently stands, and we compare it to how we feel they’ve performed since our last pre-break check-in. At this point, only four teams—the Seattle Storm, Las Vegas Aces, Connecticut Sun, and Minnesota Lynx—have more wins than los

Winsidr • July 6 2021

Power Rankings: Volume 5

Welcome back to the latest edition of the Winsidr Power Rankings! Here, we once again poll our staff to aggregate where we think each team currently stands, and we compare it to how we feel they’ve performed since our last check-in two weeks ago. Though the top three teams have separated themselves from the pack, just 2.5 games separate spots four through 11. This season, we have beat writers repping the W’s dozen franchises, and each of those reporters have given their brief updates on their re

Winsidr • June 28 2021

Indiana Fever Are In The Upside Down

The Indiana Fever are historically bad, sporting a .063 win percentage through 16 games. For reference, the lowest win percentage in league history is owned by the 2011 Tulsa Shock, who put up a .088 mark. That team finished with a mere 3-31 record and saw a head-coaching change occur midway through the season. The Fever are fast tracking to that sort of dismal season, having lost 11 straight.

Clearly, something isn’t working. It was easy to blame injuries and a compact schedule early on, but t

Winsidr • June 21 2021

WINSIDR POWER RANKINGS: VOLUME 4

Welcome back to the latest edition of the Winsidr Power Rankings! Here, we once again poll our staff to aggregate where we think each team currently stands, and we compare it to how we feel they’ve performed since our last check-in two weeks ago. With just 1.5 games separating teams four through 11, this is our toughest test yet! This season, we have beat writers repping the W’s dozen franchises, and each of those reporters have given their brief updates on their respective squads below. Make su

Winsidr • June 17 2021

Despite poor record, Indiana Fever establishing winning mindset in recent games

It hasn’t been smooth sailing for the Indiana Fever. In the six games between the Fever’s first win of the season and their first loss to the Chicago Sky, the Fever were outscored by 141 points. That’s an average margin of loss by 23.5 points. One quick explanation is that during that time frame, the Fever had played the most games in the league and were in the middle of a west coast road trip that didn’t see the team play at home between May 25 to June 12.

Still, at 1-12, the Fever have little

Winsidr • June 8 2021

WINSIDR WNBA POWER RANKINGS: VOLUME 3

Welcome back to the latest edition of the Winsidr Power Rankings. Once again, our staff aggregates where we think each team currently stands, and we compare it to how we feel each team performed since our last check-in two weeks ago. This season, we have beat writers repping the W’s dozen franchises, and each of those reporters have given their brief updates on their respective squads below. Make sure you’re following the writer that covers your beat, or better yet, all of us! Okay, that’s enoug

Winsidr • June 1 2021

The Fever Haven't Broken Yet: Takeaways from the Start of Indiana’s Season

After starting the season at a 1-7 mark, it would be easy to look ahead to the Indiana Fever’s remaining schedule and write them off. But doing so would neglect to recognize some of the serious potential this team boasts. From Kelsey Mitchell to Teaira McCowan to Kysre Gondrezick, Indiana is a real competitor in the making, despite early returns.

One of the most important additions to the team, Danielle Robinson, is playing her way into All-Defensive Team consideration under everyone’s noses. M

Winsidr • May 24 2021

Power Rankings: Volume 2

Welcome back to the latest edition of the Winsidr Power Rankings! Here, we once again poll our staff to aggregate where we think each team currently stands, and we compare it to how we feel they’ve performed since our last check-in two weeks ago. This season, we have beat writers repping the W’s dozen franchises, and each of those reporters have given their brief updates on their respective squads below. Make sure you’re following the writer that covers your beat, or better yet, all of us! Okay,

Winsidr • May 14 2021

Power Rankings: Volume 1: Pre-Season

Happy opening day, everybody! Just under the wire, we polled our Winsidr staff to aggregate where we think each of the WNBA’s dozen teams shake out before tonight’s games tip off. This season, we’ll have beat writers for each franchise, and each of those reporters previewed their respective squad below. Make sure you’re following the writer(s) that correspond(s) to your favorite team(s)!

Tristan Tucker, @TristanRTucker: After missing the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year and losing sever