Caitlin Clark wants Kelsey Mitchell back with the Indiana Fever and plans to help the franchise build a team capable of winning a championship in 2027. Mitchell is set to enter unrestricted free agency, leaving Indiana with a major decision after the guards produced one of the most successful scoring partnerships in WNBA history. Clark has promised to help convince her teammate to stay, while also offering input on potential signings. However, keeping Mitchell alongside Clark and Aliyah Boston could create a difficult salary-cap challenge for the Fever.
Caitlin Clark promises to recruit Kelsey Mitchell as Indiana Fever face free agency
Clark made her position clear during her end-of-season exit interview. She wants Mitchell, who has spent her WNBA career in Indiana, to continue playing alongside her.“We’re gonna work our butt off to get her back. We’re going to recruit her as hard as we can,” Clark said in her exit interview. “We need her. We love her. … I’ve shared with Kelsey how much I really want her back and how much I would love to continue playing with her. Hopefully we can keep her here for the rest of her career.”Their partnership delivered major results in 2026. The two guards averaged a combined 47.0 points per game, the highest scoring average by a teammate duo in a single WNBA season. They also each scored at least 20 points in the same game 16 times, setting a league record.But Mitchell has made it clear that her decision will depend on what works for her career. During her end-of-season media session, she explained why she intends to put her own needs first.“I have to be selfish,” Mitchell said during her end-of-season media session. “I think that’s where I am in my career … what I probably need and what’s probably best for me. So I have to be selfish in that room.”Mitchell also discussed the negative attention she has faced as a Fever player. Clark recognised the change in attention around the team since her arrival and credited Mitchell for supporting her.“This was Kelsey’s team for seven years, and then a lot of eyeballs come to this team,” Clark said.
Caitlin Clark, Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston create salary-cap questions for 2027
Indiana must also work out how to keep its leading players while adding depth. Boston has signed a four-year, $6.3 million extension, Mitchell could command a supermax contract, and Clark is eligible for an EPIC (Exceptional Performance on Initial Contract) extension.Those deals could leave the Fever with limited money to strengthen other positions. Clark has also offered to help general manager Amber Cox identify players who would fit the team’s needs.“You hear rumblings about how players are in the locker room or what they’re like to play with and things like that, and that’s all helpful to the GM. So, you share those types of things about who you think we can get or whose play style will fit next to whoever it is and what positions are most important for us to get, so I think those are definitely conversations we have with Amber,” Clark said.She expects free-agent recruitment to look different this offseason, too.“It’s interesting because my first (offseason) we had some of those, then my second (offseason), just with the CBA, nobody really took visits to figure out where they wanted to go,” Clark said. “There wasn’t a whole lot of recruiting of free agents (last offseason) other than texting and calling. So I think this season will be a little bit different, and I’ll be very involved in that”.Defense is another area Indiana needs to address after its first-round playoff exit. General manager Amber Cox acknowledged that the team fell short of its goal.“I think the expectation, and she’ll say this too, is always championship. We didn’t meet that expectation,” Cox said. “But we’re going to learn from it, and we’re going to grow. We’re all going to get in the room and get back to the drawing board, and we’re going to address some of those, and make sure that we’re ready to go when next season starts. And that includes Steph and the coaching staff.”With Clark ready to help recruit players and shape roster discussions, Indiana’s offseason will be about more than keeping its star backcourt together. The Fever must find the right balance between retaining their best players and building a deeper team for 2027.