Stephanie White and the No. 6 seed Indiana Fever pulled off a big upset in the opening round of the 2025 WNBA Playoffs, taking down Brittney Griner and the No. 3 seed Atlanta Dream 2-1. Now, White and the Fever face another uphill battle, facing A’ja Wilson and the No. 2 seed Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals, beginning with Game 1 on Sunday.
Indiana has dealt with brutal injury luck this season, losing five players, including Caitlin Clark, Sophie Cunningham, Chloe Bibby, Sydney Colson and Aari McDonald, to season-ending setbacks. Another Fever player, however, has missed the entire postseason despite not being ruled out for the year.
Ahead of the playoffs, Damiris Dantas suffered a concussion during a Fever practice session. She was forced to miss the entire series against the Dream and, still in concussion protocol, will be out once again in Game 1 against the Aces.
Ahead of Game 1 at Michelob ULTRA Arena, Indy Star’s Chloe Peterson reported that Dantas did not travel with the team. After missing her fourth straight game on Sunday, Dantas could remain sidelined for Game 2 on Tuesday, with the series remaining in Las Vegas. And, according to White, she is not making the progress Indiana has hoped for.
“She’s just not progressing as quickly as we hoped,” White said. “We really didn’t want to put anything at risk with travel.”
Dantas has been a reliable option off the Fever bench this season, averaging 4.6 points and 2.4 rebounds in 38 games while providing floor spacing in the frontcourt. She also played for Indiana in 2024 but took on a larger role in 2025 because of injuries and DeWanna Bonner’s departure.
Following Game 1, the Fever will face the Aces in Game 2 on Tuesday at 9:30 p.m. ET.