we I look back and it it's sad because we got to a point towards the end that we were just looking forward for it to be over like and that's not how you want to end a season that's not a feeling that you want to have Lexi Hull is about to blow the lid off the fever's roller coaster 2024 season there are all these pressures and expectations but we as a group were really resilient that's just the tip of the iceberg but what really happened behind closed doors in her latest interview with locked on women's sports Hull unveils the biggest secrets of the Indiana fever's magical turnaround alongside Caitlyn Clark delighted to have ACC Legend Le H is that what we have to do now oh my God I know I know me either what really caused their early meltdown and how did they flip the script to become title contenders what was the role of Christy sides in all this what does she really think about her new coach Stephanie white get ready for the inside scoop on Indy's Wild Ride are you ready let's go when I was in college I didn't even know if I want wanted to play professional basketball because I didn't know if it was a real career path for me picture this Lexi Hull a former national champion and the sixth overall pick in the 2022 WNBA draft sitting on the bench watching waiting it's not how she thought her 2024 season would start but there she was on the sidelines while Katie Lou Samson and Christy Wallace played instead when you're talking to Christy s early on where you're being told I am going to get more of this playing time more of this opportunity and does that help feed your confidence as well Hull's time in the WNBA had been tough her shooting wasn't as good as it was in college in her first two years she struggled with her three-point shots only going in 11% to 22% of the time that was a big drop from her great shooting at Stanford I think you know definitely early on in my career when our team and my first year you know winning five games in the season and then you're not performing great it's like where do I belong this league is tough like what am I doing wrong and so there's doubts for sure the pressure was hard to handle Paul pushed herself in every practice in game to show she belonged it wasn't just about living up to being picked sixth in the draft anymore she wanted to prove she could play in the best women's basketball league in the world your ability to shoot was something that we've talked about on previous programs it's something that you never questioned it was something that Lindon was certain of when she drafted you was something that uh if I will be frank people around the league were hoping for this idea that you know this is something you'd always done well in college it was difficult to find a rhythm it was difficult to find playing time which makes a difference as far as a rhythm goes but things started to change on May 25th playing against Las Vegas Hull got hot and made four three-pointers early in the game suddenly she felt more comfortable on the court you just put up shooting 47 . 1% from three as the season went on Paul got better and better when she played more than 30 minutes in a game she made an amazing 66. 7% of her three-pointers Paul said getting more chances to play and seeing my shots go in really boosted my confidence when you played more than 30 minutes per game this season do you know what you shot from three you shot 66.
7% from three when you went out there there's no such thing as tired Ledge in that scenario you are s i two and no one does that no one I mean it's just incredible the biggest change was how Hull thought about things she stopped doubting herself and started appreciating her journey I'm just grateful for how the sport is growing she said feeling more positive about her situation I mean it's incredibly satisfying um you know looking back on a season the things that you take are those percentages those are the things that you know you're working to improve year after year and so just you know really really proud of myself for sticking with it and believing in myself and continuing to work and then um being able to finish the season with a percentage that I'm proud of Hall's comeback was great but it was only the beginning the fever season was about to get really interesting and Hull was ready to be a big part of it just as Lexi Hull found her groove the entire Indiana Fever team faced a challenge that threatened to derail their season before it truly began 11 games in 20 days it sounds impossible doesn't it for the 2024 fever it was just the beginning of their uphill battle our season was not always fun and I think that you learn a lot from that and so being able to kind of talk about those experien and and and share like how we can be better and like just stick it out like don't it's okay like yes losing games sucks no one wants to lose games the WNBA hadn't seen a schedule this brutal since 2003 now imagine facing this Gauntlet as a young team still trying to find its identity the fever weren't just playing games they were batt against the League's Elite night after night with barely a chance to catch their breath obviously even if we didn't have a brutal schedule at the start the expectations are still there and it might not go how you want it to go and that's just part of those growing pains and then you add in trying to build chemistry and then you're adding in a very difficult schedule as the losses piled up so did the pressure the team stumbled out of the gates with a disheartening two- win n loss record for a squad that had just landed the number one draft pick expectations were Skyhigh but instead of living up to the hype they found themselves in a downward spal Lexi Hull still finding her footing after her early season bench stint felt the weight of those expectations in her own words she described the team's mindset all of these pressures and expectations you know again it's like are we good enough are we going to be good enough behind closed doors the team's morale was hanging by a thread coach Christy sides faced the unenviable task of keeping her players focused and motivated amidst the mounting losses but how do you build team chemistry when you're constantly on the road facing one tough opponent after another the lack of practice time only compounded their struggles with games coming thick and fast there was little opportunity to work on their weaknesses or develop new strategies it seemed like the fever were caught in a perfect storm of bad scheduling and tough competition we ran the numbers at the next no one had gone through what you went through since the 2003 WN season was was it hard in that in those early days to kind of keep your equilibrium between the attention and the amount of difficulty in the schedule itself how close did they come to falling apart the breaking point was near Lesser teams might have crumbled under the pressure pointing fingers and fracturing into clicks but something remarkable happened in those darkest moments hul revealed the team's secret weapon resilience we as a group were really resilient and stuck together she said instead of turning on each other they turned to each other for support they dug deep pushing through grueling practices whenever they could find the time but I think we as a group were really resilient and stuck together and believed that this process was going to play out and that we were going to get better we're going to be able we're going to be a team that can compete against every team in the league and we did that by the end of the season so I think we're just I'm proud looking back that we didn't just give in and say it's you know it's not this year like we'll start over next year it wasn't just about improving their skills it was about forging a bond that could withstand the toughest challenges the WNBA could throw at them we dug deep we practiced hard and eventually when we had time to practice in the start we didn't really have time to practice as a team we got closer we got better and I think you saw that how we played on the court it just continued to get better and better throughout the year but even as they weathered this storm the fever knew that resilience alone wouldn't be enough to turn their season around something had to change they needed a spark a catalyst that could transform their potential into results on the court little did they know that spark was about to arrive in spectacular fashion enter Caitlyn Clark the rookie sensation brought a whirlwind of excitement to the Indiana Fever reporters packed practices fans scrambled for tickets and All Eyes turned to Indianapolis but a big question remained how would this star rookie fit with a team still finding its way I remember the draft party in gamebridge which was the like the first time we had that many people in gamebridge for not really any performance you know like there the stands were fill people had their jerseys people had their gear on and it just it was like you it was just a hint of what the season was going to be like for Lexi Hull and her teammates Clark's arrival meant dealing with a new level of attention they felt the pressure to win and live up to the hype around their new star as Clark settled in she lifted everyone's game Hall was amazed by the change it's awesome to see everyone grow she said watching how Clark created new opportunities on the court Hull had to adjust to Clark's unique playing style her vision and passing were unlike anything Hull had seen it took me a while to realize she could pass to me from the other end of the Court Hull admitted I mean I I definitely got passes and tried to finish when I wasn't expecting to get the ball so like now it's like okay every cut I have every cut I make every fast break I run like I have a real opportunity to get the ball which definitely like took me a second and I think it really just took one of those to really get my head around like oh she's all the way down at the other end of the floor and she could still make the pass to me down at the Block at this end so um I mean it's it's been awesome as Hall got used to this her confidence grew suddenly every move on the court could lead to something big the game felt different more open it's so fun to be able to know that you're not just cutting to cut knowing that you're cutting with the possibil of like actually making a really cool play um so that makes it that much more worthwhile but this new opportunity brought a challenge with Clark drawing Defenders Hull found herself open more often now she had to ask herself could she make the most of these chances how would she handle this new freedom on the court and I think it's it's really fun because they Garner so much attention obviously from the other team's defense so then it allows the other players being included to make Cuts make reads and they really really good at finding you know those openings and giving the ball up when it's needed and finding the better shot so it's really fun um and I I feel really lucky to get to play with them picture this a player shooting 66. 7% when playing over 30 minutes sounds impossible right yet for Lexi Hull these video game like stats became reality how did she go from a bench player to one of the League's best Shooters Hull's shooting numbers are off the charts her three-point percentage jumped to 47. 1% way above the league average of 35% and when she played over 30 minutes she hit an incredible 66.
