On July 10, the Indiana Fever lost to the 6-17 Washington Mystics, dropping them to 9-14 on the season.
Christie Sides, the head coach of the Fever, took a lot of heat for her lineup selections and late-game decisions following the team’s defeat to Washington. For a significant part of the season, Fever supporters have been calling for her termination; but, after losing to Washington, those shouts became louder.
Caitlin Clark, the top player for the Fever, had a fantastic game against Washington, ending with 29 points, 13 assists, and five rebounds. Clark was also a proficient 3-point shooter, shooting 5-for-9 during the contest.
Many fans questioned why, in the closing seconds of the game, Sides decided to write up a play for Kelsey Mitchell—who had gone 0-for-8 from distance—instead of Clark, given how effectively Clark had performed throughout.
With 16 seconds remaining, a fan on X said, “Christie Sides decided to build up a play where she wouldn’t touch the ball after watching Caitlin Clark drop 29.”
It would be an understatement to suggest that Sides’ choice to deny Clark the ball at the conclusion of the game infuriated the crowd.
Christie Sides, Caitlin Clark’s coach, is the only person who can stop her. She hasn’t even touched the ball on at least three occasions when the game has come down to a last stroke. Horrible coaching,” a fan wrote about X.
It was especially upsetting to lose to the bottom-of-the-table Mystics 89-84, especially because they had just defeated the top-seeded New York Liberty 89-84 on July 6.
Owen Siebring of Iowa’s News today stated on X that “the Fever won their most remarkable win of the season on Saturday, and today they follow it up with their most humiliating defeat of the season.” You have to acquire these victories against the poorest clubs in the league if they hope to make the playoffs.
One fan commented on X, “I’d fire Christian Sides after this game. How you let the Mystics seem like a top 5 squad out there is beyond me.” “I feel embarrassed about this.”
Sides failed to impress even supporters of opposing teams:
This season, the Indiana Fever Need to Find a Consistent Starting 5 has also used a variety of starting lines, and their defeat to the Mystics was no exception.
Sides started Clark, Aliyah Boston, Kelsey Mitchell, Katie Lou Samuelson, and Lexie Hull in the starting lineup against Washington. Hull replaced NaLyssa Smith, who had started 20 games for Indiana this season, at the discretion of Sides.
Sides could have started Hull but retained Smith in the starting lineup. Samuelson would come off the bench in this situation.
Nevertheless, Sides shifted Samuelson to power forward, a position she is familiar with playing, even though she hasn’t started there this season until the Mystics game.
According to Matthew Byrne of ClutchPoints, Sides spoke about her lineup selection, saying, “I don’t think it influenced the whole game.” “I’m just going to leave it at that; that was a coach’s choice.”
The All-Star break is just three games away, so it’s doubtful that the Fever will make any significant coaching changes anytime soon. Still, Sides could have to hunt for a new position at the conclusion of the season if the Fever keep losing in a humiliating manner and if she is unable to find consistency in her lineup decisions.
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