What does success look like for the Indiana Fever in the 2023 WNBA Season?

The Indiana Fever 2023 WNBA season is looking to be the most fearless situation in the entire league. With such a young roster, hope is everywhere in Indiana.

With the first pick in the 2023 WNBA draft, the Indiana Fever selected Aliyah Boston, from the University of South Carolina.

It’s truly a fresh chapter in Indiana and a chance to build the right way. It’s exciting, it’s hopeful, it’s fun and it’s now.

Ranking last in both offense and defense a season ago, the Fever have a long way to go until they’re a winning basketball team. They underperformed their expected 8-28 record from 2022, posting only 5 wins accompanied by 31 losses. They have embraced the rebuild in its purest form, with 10 players coming off their rookie season and an extra five players added during the draft on Monday night.

It’s time to take a breath and recognize that it isn’t go time yet, but that doesn’t mean this season can’t be successful. In fact, this part of the rebuild is extremely tricky to navigate. The front office and coaching staff have a lot of young talent who they are hoping to retain for when this team is ready to go but they aren’t going into any games as a favorite any time soon. They can’t judge their team by wins and losses but they also can’t instill an attitude that makes losing acceptable. It’s a hard line to toe, but imperative for long-term success.

The Indiana Fever need to develop their young players and build a winning culture

The organization and the fans can’t simply wait for the players to become good, they need to be present in the development as it is an integral part of the process. Being a part of this makes the winning all the sweeter, you know what it took to get to the top, you grow with the players, you wear their blows, you feel like you’re a part of it.

As for short-term success, Aliyah Boston winning the Rookie of the Year feels like a no-brainer but shouldn’t go without mention. Although she has already stood out as a seemingly unanimous number 1 draft pick, she should be looking to maintain the gap between her and her draft class. Launching her professional career with the same momentum that she created during college will set a good standard for her time in the WNBA moving forward.

For wins and losses, it becomes a little trickier. I would see 40 one-point losses as a more successful season than posting a 9-31 record where 15 of those defeats are over halfway through the third quarter. Keeping a game competitive and making their opponents earn wins will be more substantial in the long run than having inconsistent performances.

The Indiana Fever are going to be fun to follow this season. It feels like they have nothing to lose and so much to gain. Compound that with an insanely young roster and it’s a recipe for a good time.

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