Fever Coach Stephanie White Issues Exciting Statement on Monday

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Paolo Songco | Last updated Jul 1, 2025 7:37 AM ET

To say that the WNBA is leveling up would be an understatement at this point. A testament to this fact is the league announcing on Monday that they have approved three expansion teams through 2028 and 2030.

The cities of Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia have all won their bids and will get their own WNBA teams in the near future. This will bring up the total teams in the league to 18, with two more sides--Toronto and Portland--embarking on their inaugural campaign next season.

Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White was asked to share her thoughts on this major development, and the veteran shot-caller made her opinion on the matter crystal clear.

”I keep thinking back to my early days in this league when Detroit and Cleveland had a team,” White said. “And of course, Philadelphia, excited about the opportunity to put a WNBA franchise there. There was a great turnout when the women’s Final Four was there a number of years back.

“It’s an exciting opportunity for our league to continue to have these expansion teams. The quality of players in our league and opportunities that present themselves for people who have not been able to break into the league, it’s a really good thing.”

White could not help but look back at her own playing career, which saw her suit up for the Fever between 2000 and 2004. As she said, White got the opportunity to play against the Detroit Shock--now the Dallas Wings--as well as the now defunct Cleveland Rockers.

The Fever coach also expressed her excitement over the new opportunities this expansion will provide for the players. More teams means more players, which means that hopefuls who have not made it to the WNBA could potentially get their shot in the coming years.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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