Which Version Of The Indiana Fever Is The Real One?

Aliyah Boston’s teammate drives so much of the American population insane that it’s easy to forget her own talent for getting in other people’s heads. Opposing bigs unravel next to her.

Jonquel Jones, possibly the nicest and humblest athlete I’ve ever spoken to, revealed the limits of her patience two years ago when she tussled with Boston in the Indiana Fever’s home opener. Expect a technical foul or two whenever Boston and Brittney Griner play. Remember Boston’s playoff spat with Brionna Jones? These bigs might tell you their beef has to do with Boston’s prodigious use of elbows in the post. Kelsey Plum’s impression of her, done all in good fun at Unrivaled, involved a pair of violent oblique twists before the shot attempt. 

There were no techs or flaring tempers Sunday night, but Boston’s skill and physicality made A’ja Wilson the latest victim of a Boston brain boom. In the Fever’s 109-75 beatdown of the Las Vegas Aces, Wilson had maybe the worst game of her season, finishing 9-of-23 from the field while Boston went 9-of-14. (Granted, Wilson’s worst still looks like 20 points, 12 boards, and a couple of blocks.) Unable to get to her spots against Boston, the reigning MVP had to take more jumpers than she wanted. “Twenty-three shots I took—I was probably happy with two of them,” Wilson said after the game. When head coach Becky Hammon yanked the starters with a little under five minutes to play, they’d only managed to score four points in the fourth quarter.