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Caitlin Clark's WNBA Coach Is Stepping Away From Team

Originally posted on The Spun | By Tzvi Machlin | Last updated Jun 19, 2025 6:09 PM ET

As if this week couldn't get any crazier for the WNBA right now, the head coach of Caitlin Clark's team is suddenly stepping away.

On Thursday, the Indiana Fever announced that head coach Stephanie White will be stepping away ahead of tonight's game against the Golden State Valkyries to attend to "a personal matter." White is in her second stint with the Fever, having previously coached the team from 2011 to 2016, first as an assistant and then as a head coach.

In her absence, Austin Kelly will serve as acting head coach and was in charge of Thursday's shootaround. Kelly has been one of White's top assistants since they worked together on the Connecticut Sun.

"It's going to be the same. I think we are an extension of each other," Kelly told reporters, via ESPN's Kendra Andrews. "The message is still the same that we talk about in the locker room: playing for each other, getting it done on the defensive end and then having that help fuel us on the offensive end. But the vibes are good."

Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White will be away from the team for an unspecified amount time due to a personal matter.

Assistant coach Austin Kelly will serve as acting head coach. https://t.co/HfIJI3lpWa
— ESPN (@espn) June 19, 2025

The timing of White's absence isn't great as the Fever are beginning a glut of games and a lengthy West Coast trip. They're currently playing five games in just eight days with a three-game trip out west starting today and ending next Tuesday.

"We're just trying to manage everything within the game and then we're going to put a lot on them to get treatment in between games," Kelly explained. "We're here, Vegas, Seattle, then back home. It's about us taking care of business on the floor, first and foremost, and looking for opportunities throughout the game to manage those minutes."

Given how suddenly Stephanie White is stepping away we can only hope that whatever it is isn't something serious.

As for the team, White has led them to a 6-5 start on the season. Last year they didn't get above .500 until the 33rd game of the year. They never rose more than two games above .500 at any point last year and they'd like to change that to be sure.

How will Caitlin Clark respond to her new interim head coach?

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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