With the Indiana Fever’s 105-57 drubbing of the Nigerian national team on Saturday, their preseason has officially come to an end.
It’s now less than a week until the Fever tip off another highly-anticipated season with a game against the Dallas Wings. The hopes and expectations for this team are high, with a perfect mix of grizzled veterans and talented youngsters looking to get over the hump and win a championship. The biggest question for the Fever in 2026 will be health.
Injuries were detrimental to Indiana last season. It felt like any time the team started to gain some momentum, they lost another key player. Despite that, they still took the eventual WNBA Champion Las Vegas Aces to overtime in a winner-take-all Game 5 in the semifinals. With a new season on the horizon, the Fever are hoping to put the injuries behind them.
Following Saturday’s preseason win, head coach Stephanie White spoke to the media and gave some important injury updates for her squad. The first update was on veteran forward Monique Billings, who left Saturday’s game and didn’t return. Here’s what White had to say about Billings, who claimed that she’s going to be fine.
“We have an opportunity, as with most ankle tweaks, to reevauate tomorrow and see where she is,” White said.
It’s good to see that Billings’ injury doesn’t sound too serious. An official update on her status should come this week after some more testing. White also spoke pregame about a few other injury situations, starting with guard Lexie Hull. White was hoping Hull could play a little on Saturday, but decided to play it safe instead.
“With some of those naggy things, if it’s not necessary, then we’ll take our time,” White said. “And now she’ll have a whole ‘nother week before we have to play again.”
The final pregame update from White was on rookie second-round guard Justine Pissott, who missed the final two preseason games. She said that Pissott has met with doctors and they’re hoping she can be back to practice in a week or two. While the timeline is more uncertain with Pissott, it’s good to hear that she could return to the court soon.
If all goes well this week, the Fever could have everyone, minus Pissott, ready to go for the season opener. After a long offseason and some tough preseason games, that’s all White could hope for as the Fever’s season gets ready to tip off.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Indiana Fever update injury front after WNBA preseason
Reporting by Zach Hiney, Hawkeyes Wire / Hawkeyes Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
