Support Pouring In for Indiana Fever Player Amid Personal Struggle

Just days after dropping a career-high 27 points in a 107-101 home win against the Phoenix Mercury on Wednesday, the reality of life struck when the Fever hit the road and McDonald's academic pursuits interrupted her down time.

Plenty of fans could relate to McDonald's personal struggle. Before long, her mentions were flooded with supportive messages saying "you can do it" and "one page at a time."

A few responses joked that she should get Clark to help while she remains sidelined with a right groin injury with "no timetable" for a return.

Other X users enlisted themselves for support, offering to email her professors to ask for an extension and even put pen to paper on her behalf.

McDonald's Personal Struggle Speaks to Larger WNBA Problem

In the comments, McDonald shared that she is pursuing a graduate degree in Applied Behavior Analysis, but did not specify what school. She finished her undergraduate degree at the University of Arizona in June 2020, vowing "#MastersUpNext."

A three-time AP All-American, McDonald led the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament championship game the following season and got drafted No. 3 overall by the Atlanta Dream in the 2021 WNBA Draft.

However, McDonald's professional basketball career has not followed a linear path. The Fever is her third WNBA team in five seasons, and her 10 starts for Indiana are already more than she got in any of her three seasons in Atlanta.

Thanks to low base salaries and constant roster upheaval, WNBA players face more financial jeopardy than most professional athletes — making a graduate degree a wise move for long-term career stability.

That's one of the reasons higher salaries were named as the No. 1 priority in CBA negotiations by a wide margin in an anonymous WNBA player poll in July. Resources for players' families and retirement benefits are also key sticking points.

McDonald will earn $52,333 total from her pro-rated, rest-of-season contract. In five years in the league, her career earnings add up to a paltry $309,369 — approximately half of the $593,902 LeBron James made per game last NBA season.