The Indiana Fever got some pretty bad news this week as both Syd Colson and Aari McDonald are set to miss the remainder of the 2025 WNBA season due to injury. Add in that Caitlin Clark is still sidelined and you get a pretty dire situation at guard for Indiana.
Luckily, the injuries allowed the team to qualify for a hardship signing, with the Fever bringing in veteran point guard Odyssey Sims. Sims has struggled to find a lasting home in the league, but she can provide a major boost to the Fever bench for the duration of her time in Indiana.
Let's take a look at the projected starting lineup and bench depth in Indiana with Sims now on the roster. Note that this projected lineup is still accounting for Clark being sidelined — she would move into the starting five once healthy.
Projected Fever lineup after adding Odyssey Sims
Starter | Bench | Bench | |
|---|---|---|---|
PG | Kelsey Mitchell | Odyssey Sims | |
SG | Lexie Hull | Caitlin Clark* (Injured) | |
SF | Sophie Cunningham | Chloe Bibby | |
PF | Natasha Howard | Makayla Timpson | |
C | Aliyah Boston | Damiris Dantas |
Obviously, the biggest thing right now for Indiana is that Caitlin Clark is still sidelined. Once she returns, she'll slide into the starting backcourt over Hull and the Fever will have a little more depth at guard.
Because right now, even the Sims addition doesn't change the fact that the Fever have an issue with the backcourt. Losing Syd Colson and Aari McDonald is a disaster for this team, because both were very capable ball-handlers who played an important role on the team. McDonald, in particular, is a huge loss, as she was having the best season of her WNBA career.
Still, Sims will help steady the bench a bit. She's not a superstar, but she is a capable, veteran point guard who understands how to run an offense and who can score when needed. She had a strong start to 2025 with the Sparks before the team waived her back in July. This season, Sims is averaging 9.8 points and 3.5 assists per game.
Until Clark returns, Indiana will be in major need of Sims as a scorer. She was on track for the best 3-point shooting season of her WNBA career, so if she can pick back up where she left off as far as her jump shot goes, the Fever will have much-needed ammunition as they pursue potential home-court in the first round of the playoffs.
It's possible, though unlikely, that Indiana could start Sims at the point and move Hull to the bench, but that seems like it would risk disrupting some of the rhythm the team has found. To still be the No. 5 seed without Clark is a huge achievement, and Hull has been a key part of that.