How Indiana Fever Gave Out Two Historic Contracts In One Week

BusinessSportsMoneyHow Indiana Fever Gave Out Two Historic Contracts In One WeekByTony East,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Tony East is an Indiana-based writer who covers the Pacers and Fever.Follow AuthorApr 29, 2026, 02:24am EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - MAY 22: Kelsey Mitchell #0, Caitlin Clark #22 and Aliyah Boston #7 of the Indiana Fever react against the Seattle Storm at Climate Pledge Arena on May 22, 2024 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)Getty ImagesINDIANAPOLIS – On April 11, the Indiana Fever announced that they had re-signed star guard Kelsey Mitchell to a one-year contract. That alone was not news – star teammate Caitlin Clark called keeping Mitchell a priority, and the Fever sent a core qualifying offer to Mitchell. That offer made it impossible for her to negotiate with other teams. Her return was expected.Yet her signing was significant in that it was a supermax contract, meaning for the first time ever a Fever player was set to make $1 million in one season. Mitchell’s deal will pay her 20% of the WNBA’s new salary cap, which is set at $7 million after the league’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement was agreed to last month.“For nearly a decade, Kelsey has been a foundational piece of the Indiana Fever and securing her return was our highest priority. Kelsey Mitchell is among the top of a long list of great athletes who have elevated not only our city and franchise, but their sport as a whole. She further cemented her legacy last season, and we hope her return underscores how much she is valued by our entire organization,” Fever general manager Amber Cox said in a press release.Cox mentioned that Mitchell has been with Indiana for nearly a decade, and the salary comparison across those seasons is telling. During Mitchell’s first eight years with the Fever, sh...