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Michael Voepel, ESPN Senior Writer
What has already been a landmark 2024 for guard Caitlin Clark got even better Wednesday, as the Indiana Fever qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2016. It ended the franchise’s seven-season playoff drought that was tied for the longest in WNBA history.
Clark, the No. 1 draft pick and front-runner for WNBA Rookie of the Year, and the Fever made the postseason despite not playing Tuesday. That was thanks to Las Vegas’ 90-71 victory over Chicago and Phoenix’s 74-66 win against Atlanta.
Indiana, which moved to 17-16 Sunday and has its first winning record since June 2019, is in sixth place in the WNBA, which sends eight teams to the playoffs.
Seven of the spots are now clinched, as Phoenix (17-17) also earned a berth Tuesday after missing the postseason last year for the first time since 2012. Chicago and Atlanta, both 11-22, are battling for the last spot with Washington, which beat Dallas 90-86 Tuesday and is 10-23.
New York, Connecticut, Minnesota, Las Vegas and Seattle previously had earned their postseason spots.
