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Fever Coach Stephanie White Reveals Which NBA Superstar Aliyah Boston Studies Closely

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Paolo Songco | Last updated Aug 7, 2025 11:35 AM ET

The Indiana Fever had some very high expectations for Aliyah Boston when they took her as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 WNBA Draft.

The former South Carolina star has delivered for the Fever over the first three seasons of her career, being named an All-Star in each of them.

Aliyah Boston’s Rise Under Stephanie White

An argument can be made, however, that Boston has elevated her game significantly in her third season with the Fever. In 30 games played thus far, the 6-foot-5 center-forward has hit career-high marks in scoring (15.5 points) and assists (3.8). On top of that, she’s also averaging 8.4 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game, while shooting 54.1% from the floor.

She’s doing all that while playing 30.3 minutes per contest, which is the least amount of playing time she’s averaged throughout her WNBA career.

It can’t be pure coincidence that Boston’s rise coincides with the fact that Stephanie White took over as the Fever’s head coach in the offseason. While White will be unwilling to take credit for Boston’s improvements, there’s no denying that the veteran shot-caller has had something to do with the same.

White Reveals Boston’s NBA Influence

White had nothing but high praise for Boston as she spoke about her star forward in a recent appearance on ESPN’s “NBA Today” show. The 48-year-old coach sees Boston as an underappreciated player and has argued that the former Rookie of the Year deserves more credit than she is being given.

In the same interview, White also revealed which NBA superstar Boston has been keeping a close eye on.

"In the offseason, I said, 'I want you to watch Jokic,'" White stated, reflecting on a conversation she had with Boston before the start of the 2025 campaign.

ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne pointed out that Boston has been speaking about Jokic’s influence in her new podcast with Candace Parker, “Post Moves."

"Yes, love that," White responded.

Boston’s game isn’t exactly a carbon copy of that of Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic. After all, the three-time NBA MVP is one-of-one.

Jokic is one of the greatest bigs to ever pick up a basketball, and there’s no denying that he’s an excellent choice to model one’s game on. This decision appears to be paying dividends for Boston, and she has White to thank for pushing her in that direction.

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

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