What happens to Caitlin Clark, Kelsey Mitchell and Sophie Cunningham after the Fever's elimination?

Indiana Fever certainly started October in a way they did not expect. On Thursday, October 1, the Las Vegas Aces defeated Indiana 94-83 at Michelob ULTRA Arena and ended their season, taking the first-round series 2-1 . The Fever had won 99-89 at home just two days earlier to force a deciding Game 3, but this time, the story was different. The season is over, but a new chapter is beginning, with Caitlin Clark, Kelsey Mitchell and Sophie Cunningham facing three very different scenarios.

Kelsey Mitchell enters free agency at the best moment of her career

Kelsey Mitchell has a very specific reason to look ahead closely: she just put together a huge season.

The guard finished 2026 averaging 24.7 points per game across 44 games, ranking second in scoring across the entire WNBA while shooting 45% from three-point range . She also finished with 1,086 points, breaking the record for the most points scored by an Indiana player in a regular season.

And there is another detail that makes her situation even more interesting: Mitchell is already the Fever’s all-time leading scorer. In April, she signed a one-year, $1.4 million supermax contract , but she has already used the two franchise-player designations allowed. That means that after a season like this, she enters the market as an unrestricted free agent.

That does not mean her story with Indiana is over. It means that, for the first time at this point in her career, what comes next is an open decision.

Sophie Cunningham also has a decision to make

Sophie Cunningham heads into the same offseason from a very different place. The 30-year-old guard did not have Mitchell’s offensive volume, but she found a role that became important for Indiana , especially after returning from a major knee injury.

She played 43 games, including three starts, averaging 7.9 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 22.2 minutes per game . She also shot 41.9% from three-point range, a number that helped make her a consistent threat off the bench.

Her value also went beyond the numbers. Cunningham brought physical defense, energy and a respected voice in the locker room, elements that do not fully show up in a stat sheet . Now, though, it is time to decide what comes next: her one-year, $665,000 contract expires after this season, making her an unrestricted free agent as well and allowing her to either remain in Indiana or explore other options.

Caitlin Clark is playing a different game off the court

And then there is Caitlin Clark.

Although her name naturally comes up when discussing Indiana’s future, her situation is not the same as Mitchell’s or Cunningham’s. Clark is not entering this offseason as a free agent , but she is the piece around which the franchise will have to continue building its future.

The 24-year-old star finished the regular season averaging 22.3 points and 8.3 assists per game, leading the WNBA in assists. She also helped Indiana reach 28 wins and shared an offense with Mitchell that ranked among the most efficient the league has produced .

And in these playoffs, she delivered another performance that immediately drew attention: 27 points and 15 assists in Game 2, becoming the first player in WNBA playoff history to reach those numbers in the same game. She finished Game 3 with 18 points, but this time, it was not enough to prevent elimination.