Construction at Bankers Life Fieldhouse was going to force the Indiana Fever to use Hinkle Fieldhouse as the team’s home venue the next two summers and part of a third.
The COVID-19 pandemic has temporarily shelved those plans with the entire 2020 season now set to be played at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, beginning later this month.
Adjusting to the new surroundings will be a challenge, though after missing the WNBA playoffs the past three years, there’s only one direction to go anyway.
In 20 seasons, Indiana has qualified for the postseason 13 times. Most of the praise goes to retired all-everything forward Tamika Catchings, who basically entered and exited the league wearing an All-Star uniform and was recently named part of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s 2020 induction class.
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When it comes to putting players around her to complete an all-time Fever starting five, things get trickier. But here goes:
Forward: Tamika Catchings
Mount Rushmore references are tired, but I’m going that route because in the WNBA, Catchings is at least Jefferson if not Washington. The league’s all-time lists have her first in steals, third in points and rebounds, eighth in assists and 12th in blocks. She holds most franchise records and likely still will when she’s collecting Social Security. Statistics aside, Catchings is one of the most approachable people one could meet, and it was this accessibility that made her a fan favorite throughout the league, not just locally.
Forward: Tammy Sutton-Brown
A member of the Fever for six seasons (2007 to 2012), the 6-foot-4 forward averaged nine points and 5.2 rebounds a game in her time here. And though she didn’t start her WNBA career in Indianapolis, Sutton-Brown became the fifth player in league history to score 3,000 points, grab 2,000 boards and block 400 shots over her career. Sutton-Brown retired after the Fever were crowned WNBA champs in 2012 but still ranks seventh in blocks and 23rd in rebounds on the league’s all-time lists.
Guard: Katie Douglas
The former Perry Meridian High School and Purdue University star had already played seven WNBA seasons when she arrived to her hometown team via trade from the Connecticut Sun. In six seasons with the Fever (2008 to 2013), the 6-1 left-hander was consistent in her productivity, whether it was points, rebounds, assists or steals. Douglas was a five-time WNBA All-Star and was named to the league’s all-defensive first team four times. She currently ranks eighth all-time in steals, 14th in points and 24th in assists.
Guard: Tully Bevilaqua
The 5-7 Australian played for Indiana from 2005 to 2010, helping lead the franchise to its first WNBA Finals in 2009 before it lost a fifth and deciding game to Phoenix. All told, Bevilaqua played in 10 different postseason series for the Fever before finishing her WNBA career for the San Antonio Silver Stars (now the Las Vegas Aces). Counted on more for assists and steals than point production, Bevilaqua ranks 12th in the latter category in WNBA history.
Guard: Briann January
Drafted by the Fever in 2009, January played her first nine seasons here before continuing her career for the Phoenix Mercury via a trade. The point guard’s impact locally is often overshadowed by the likes of Catchings and Douglas, but January was reliable and steady, her scoring averages between 6.9 and 10.3 and her assist norm between 2.3 and 5.0. A WNBA All-Star in 2014, January is still an active player and ranks 20th on the league’s all-time assists list.
Mike Beas is a sportswriter for the Daily Journal, a sister paper to The Tribune. He can be reached at [email protected].