The 2026 season’s probabilities are slimmer with the WNBPA and WNBA still locking horns on the CBA discussions, but the teams are preparing themselves for the next steps, which include the expansion draft. With two new teams entering the league, multiple sides will lose key players. As for the Indiana Fever, no player is as crucial as Caitlin Clark.
Even at the conclusion of the 2025 season, Stephanie White declared Kelsey Mitchell as a priority for the side, which makes her an obvious choice for one of the protected places. The team’s decisions depend on CBA outcomes, but there are certain players that the side would love to have in their plan for the future.
Indiana Fever To Protect Key Players, Including Caitlin Clark And Aliyah Boston
The addition of two franchises would be exciting news for the fans, but a worrying sign for the active franchises in the league as they prepare their list of protected players. With two new franchises, the sides will have a chance to secure five players each, unlike six in the 2025 season.
A few teams are in rebuilding mode, which makes it easier for them to protect their key players. However, teams like the Indiana Fever, Las Vegas Aces, New York Liberty, and Phoenix Mercury have multiple players to protect. For the semifinalist Fever, every player played a vital role in the run, with fans urging the front office to go with a similar lineup (but healthier) in the upcoming season.
this is who espn projects the fever to protect in the expansion draft. apparently teams only protect 5 players this time pic.twitter.com/S5EZsxN0mv
— correlation (@nosyone4) December 11, 2025
While there are multiple projections for the protected players, the most common names are Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston, and Kelsey Mitchell, who are core players to the franchise’s success. Two additional names to consider are Lexie Hull and Makayla Timpson, due to the growth they have shown and their impact on the games.
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This leaves one big name, Sophie Cunningham, who would be an unrestricted free agent, allowing her to talk with any franchise and sign for them. The Fever signed multiple players to one-year contracts, a decision driven by both parties’ business needs, considering the usability and CBA discussions. But now is the time when fans will see multiple changes in teams.
Caitlin Clark Predicts Multiple Exits
When the Las Vegas Aces lifted the 2025 WNBA title, talks about the new teams and rosters began. With the number of free agents, enticing WNBA draft, and the expansion draft, every team will undergo reshuffling. The Fever playmaker, though, made predictions about exits, predicting the largest number of ‘releases’ from the franchise in the league.
The Fever roster was the biggest one, with the number of injuries they had. Considering the same, on Aerial Powers’ Vlog, Clark said, “Every player that’s come in and you especially, like you’ve made it so fun and we’ve loved having you. And, um, you know, obviously not everybody can stay cause we had 17 people on our team. So, no matter who it is, like, you know, you cherish those memories you got to spend with each other.”
CC is not the only player discussing the loss of players, though. The Wings GM, Curt Miller, warned the franchise of expansion draft challenges, highlighting that the team would lose players.