Fever move closer to playoffs, remain WNBA's biggest unknown

Even without Caitlin Clark, Sophie Cunningham and a number of their walking wounded, the Indiana Fever took a big step toward securing a berth in the WNBA playoffs for the second straight season on Tuesday.

When the night started, Indiana was in eighth place in the standings, one game clear of the Los Angeles Sparks, a team they will face on Friday and has beaten them three times already this season.

After consecutive losses to the Minnesota Lynx, the team with the WNBA's best record, the Fever desperately needed a win.

Against the Seattle Storm, another team on the playoff bubble, Aliyah Boston set the tone with 27 points, nine rebounds and three assists. Kelsey Mitchell poured in 21, while Odyssey Sims connected on a trio of three-pointers in the 95-75 win.

The victory pushed Indiana to sixth in the WNBA standings and ensured they will have the tiebreaker over Seattle if it comes to that. The Storm now holds the final playoff spot with a one-game lead over Los Angeles.

With six games to go, Indiana's playoff prospects are much better with Tuesday's win than without it, but the biggest question is still the health of Clark. There isn't a clear answer when she will return. She joined the team for shootaround on Sunday and is getting closer to a return, that much is clear.

It'd be crazy to talk about Indiana as a title contender, or even a team capable of making the WNBA Finals without Clark. But with her, anything seems possible. Almost anything, anyway.

We don't know if Clark will find the form that had her in the top five of the MVP voting as a rookie, but she's had her moments this year, such as when she scored 32 points in a win against the Liberty on June 14. 

Indiana has been determined to give her the time to heal and get right, but what will that mean if she's able to return soon, even before the playoffs?

A deep postseason run still seems unlikely. Minnesota remains the title favorite, while Las Vegas looks as dangerous as anyone. Outside of that, though, every team has had ups and downs. Yet, they are all dangerous in their own way.

As far as Indiana is concerned, if Clark is back in the lineup, it will have three WNBA All-Stars. Mitchell, Boston and Clark are each capable of scoring 30 on any given night.

Heck, Indiana just scored 95 against a playoff contender on Tuesday with Clark in street clothes. 

Just imagine if she's playing. Or even better, imagine Clark at 100%, playing as she did last season, or earlier this season.

If that's the Clark the Fever gets back from injury, assuming that happens at some point, the WNBA's biggest unknown would turn instantly into one of the league's most-feared playoff draws.