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Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White hopes to capitalize on this moment in the WNBA

Stephanie White has been waiting for this moment, this growth that the WNBA has experienced over the past year, for 25 years.

She will be able to capitalize on that growth with her hometown franchise. White, from West Lebanon, Indiana, was officially announced as the Indiana Fever's head coach on Friday. This comes after the 2023 WNBA Coach of the Year parted ways with the Connecticut Sun after two seasons.

“First and foremost, it’s my home,” White told ESPN’s “NBA Today.” “It’s a franchise, the Indiana Fever, the Indiana Pacers, it’s in my DNA. I grew up in Indiana, played in Indiana, played with the franchise and of course was part of the franchise when we won the WNBA championship.”

More: Stephanie White knew Caitlin Clark would evolve. Now she will guide Clark's next steps.

White has been a part of the WNBA in some form almost since its inception; She was drafted in 1999, two years after the league launched in 1997. She was a player, assistant coach and head coach for multiple franchises and won a WNBA championship as an assistant for the Fever.

She has never experienced anything like this moment in all her years in the league. The WNBA saw unprecedented growth in the 2024 season, fueled by Caitlin Clark and the rest of the rookie class. The Fever saw merchandise sales increase by over 1,000%, had 38 games on national television and sold out arenas cheering on Clark and Indiana everywhere.

White already has a familiar relationship with the Fever's top player, even if he is not their new coach. White said she has known about Clark since she was in eighth grade; White was coaching at Vanderbilt at the time and Clark was at the top of many college coaches' watch lists. Now it's been nearly 10 years since White first heard of Clark, and she has blossomed into the superstar many coaches predicted she would be.

“She’s a connoisseur of the game,” White said. “She loves the game of basketball. She handled all the attention so well. She just wants to play, she just wants to win. I look forward to coaching players like this and this young franchise, this young team and our next steps.”

Viewership increased across the board in 2024, and this season became the most-watched on ESPN in 25 years – a 170% increase from 2023. The WNBA Finals were the most-watched in 25 years, with each of the five games attracting more than 100 viewers reached 1 million viewers and 32 games throughout the season were watched by over a million viewers.

White has seen that rise on both sides — during the WNBA offseason, she's an analyst for ESPN, covering NBA and Big Ten women's basketball games. She knew this moment was coming based on the excitement she had seen at women's college basketball games in previous seasons.

“I think the biggest thing for me is that I've been part of the WNBA for 25 years, worked on both sides, in the media and in the dugout, and also being a player in this league. “I mean, this is the moment “We've been waiting for,” White told NBA Today in her first interview since becoming the Fever's coach. “So, I don't know if you prepare for it so much as if you just accept it. Accept where we are. Think about the momentum moving forward, where we wanted this league to be, where we're still striving for it to develop.” And just seize this moment, seize this opportunity, help this team, This franchise continues to better position us for success.”

With her new role, White will now be tasked with coaching Clark and 2023 Rookie of the Year Aliyah Boston, as well as Kelsey Mitchell (if she re-signs), Lexie Hull and the rest of the program to a successful playoff run. This is a Fever team that has just undergone a rebuild. The 20-20 season in 2024 marks the first time they have made the playoffs since 2016.

There's a lot of young talent on this roster: three All-Stars, two Rookies of the Year and players who have an innate will to win. And White has the skills to make this a contender.

“This young, exciting squad, think of a generational player in Caitlin Clark and back-to-back Rookie of the Years in Aliyah Boston, and Kelsey Mitchell had, in my opinion, the best year of her career,” White said. “It’s just an exciting squad. What an outstanding moment we're experiencing in women's basketball right now, and to come back and be a part of it in my home state with my home team, it's just a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I'm so grateful.”

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