Golden State Gave the Indiana Fever the “Fix Your Life” Game
Golden State Shot Their Shot & Fever Shot 31%, and that’s gracious!
Caitlin Clark came back from her injury, but the Golden State Valkyries came back with something scarier — intention to kill. And Indiana? They were given a first class ticket to come back to Earth.
This game was more of a public accountability session. A 19-point loss at home. The kind of loss that gets teams in group chats like “we gotta talk.” For having one of the most dynamic point guards that the WNBA has ever seen, the Fever scored just 61 points — their lowest output since 2019 — and got out-rebounded, out-hustled, and out-focused by a team that was supposed to be figuring it out, not executing like playoff vets.
Stephanie White wasn’t even mad, she was disappointed. White said Indiana lacked “competitive fire.” That’s therapy-level language.
Clark, returning from a groin injury that kept her out since June 24, gave you 10 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 turnovers in 25 minutes. Solid in flashes. But this game wasn’t about her shot. It was about what’s surrounding her. And what’s surrounding her? Inconsistency. Miscommunication. Flat effort.
The Fever shot 30.9% from the field, 22.2% from deep, and scored just 19 total points in the second and fourth quarters combined.
That’s not offense.
That’s an existential spiral.
Nakase’s Valkyries Play Defense & Drop Proverbs
Golden State played like a team that took offense to being called an expansion squad. This was team defense in its purest form. Clamps with joy, movement with intent. They forced 14 turnovers, held Indiana to just 26 paint points (a team that usually gets 40+), and looked like they’d been playing together for five years, not five months.
Coach Natalie Nakase channeled her inner Coach Carter. Nakase’s team didn’t just rotate, they studied. They didn’t just guard, they communed.
Nakase didn’t need to say much because her Valkyries said it for her:
Veronica Burton was everywhere: 21 points, 6 assists, +22 plus-minus
Temi Fagbenle grabbed 8 boards and held down the paint like TSA
The bench brought energy and zero drop-off — 80 total points on 37% shooting, but with real control
Nakase kept the attention on connection, paint defense, and staying present. She even mentioned how she’s not thinking about Portland’s WNBA team despite her ties because “I am where my feet are.” That’s poetry and coaching in one line. She’s locked in. And so is her team.
The Fever Need More Than Clark’s Legs
This was Clark’s return game but it was far from her return show. The groin is still healing, the cardio still needs time, and the defense? It wasn’t built to hold all that weight.
The Fever, now 9-10, are 5-5 with Clark, 5-5 without her, and you can’t tell if that’s a stat or a shrug. One week they beat the Aces and win the Commissioner’s Cup. The next, they’re losing by 19 at home to an expansion squad while shooting 31%.
Aari McDonald started next to Clark. Lexie Hull came off the bench. Makayla Timpson continued to flash upside with 10 points and 6 rebounds in 20 minutes.
But Indiana got beat in the details:
Gave up 47 rebounds (vs. their 36)
Got bullied out of the paint
Shot 6-for-27 from three
Got outscored 25–11 in bench points
This game exposed something beyond X’s and O’s. This game really showed who shows up ready to compete every night. And lately, that’s not always Indiana.
Lexie Hull said it best: bring “focus and envy” every single day. If that’s the mission, the Fever left their envy on airplane mode.
Kayla Thornton Ain’t Playing With Nobody
Shoutout to Kayla Thornton — the unofficial president of No Easy Buckets Incorporated. She clamped up like rent was due and gave Clark hell in the halfcourt.
“We’re not the biggest team but we have big hearts,” Thorton said.
And when asked about guarding Caitlin Clark, she didn’t blink:
“Caitlin Clark is Caitlin Clark… you just take away her tendencies. She’s gonna get her shot off. That’s who she is.”
That’s respect and a gameplan.
Kayla knows the assignment — make it tough, make it uncomfortable, and walk away with the win.
The Valkyries did all three.
