Aliyah Boston is finding her flow for the Indiana Fever

The biggest early-season focus for the Indiana Fever was the rookie debut of Caitlin Clark. After an illustrious college career at Iowa, fans anticipated how Clark could translate her game to the WNBA. Clark has had her good and bad moments. However, the Fever got off to a slow start as they lost their first five games before finally grabbing a win over the Los Angeles Sparks. 

At this moment, the Fever are currently 4-10, sitting 10th in the WNBA standings. The team is still trying to find their identity as a future playoff contender. They have tremendous talent but are still figuring out how to be effective with one another. Luckily, there’s a bright spot when you look into the Fever’s four wins. Their center, Aliyah Boston, has shone in every win and has made sure to be effective in multiple facets of the game.

Boston has been overshadowed by Clark but she was the number one overall pick in 2023, a year before her new teammate. She had a terrific rookie campaign, winning Rookie of the Year and becoming a WNBA All-Star. Boston showed her dominance early which kept Fever fans optimistic for the future. 

The expectation was that Clark and Boston would complement each other perfectly — both have very high IQs for the game and play with efficiency. However, it's been a big adjustment for both. Many fans blame the team’s system for why Boston and Clark haven’t been effective yet and Boston is being asked to play a very different role on offense than she's ever played in college or in the WNBA. Whatever it is, it hasn’t worked through the first 14 games of the season. 

A big takeaway from the early season is if Boston is not effective, the Fever can’t succeed. That’s why her top performances of the season have all resulted in wins for her team, and why her most recent game should be cause for optimism.

Good things happen when the Fever feature Aliyah Boston in their offense

In the Fever’s first win against the Sparks, Boston recorded 17 points to go with six rebounds. It was the perfect example of running the offense through their center. Sure, when the ball touches Boston’s hands the game slows down. However, it also allows the Fever to be more effective in their offense. The beauty of Boston on the block is she can find ways to score and find open teammates on the perimeter. Her style played a huge factor in the second half as the Fever took control to take the win. 

The win opened up so many things for the Fever. With her leading the way, they shot 42 percent from the floor and secured 32 rebounds. The Fever wouldn’t clinch their next win until June 1 in a win over the Chicago Sky, then another one a week later against the Washington Mystics. 

Through the past couple of weeks, Boston has continued to slowly play more effectively. She continued to be a physical force under the basket and understood how to make the right reads. She delivered her season-best on Thursday against the Atlanta Dream with 27 points and 13 rebounds. She set the tone early with her dominance in the paint and she continued to punish Atlanta inside. 

If there’s one takeaway from the Indiana Fever’s early season, it’s that the team has to utilize all of their weapons. Sure, fans want to see Caitlin Clark shoot deep 3s every game. But that’s not a formula that can build a winning culture. Aliyah Boston has reminded the world that she’s a winning player and the Fever have to keep building symmetry between her and Clark.