The Indiana Fever’s campaign in the recently concluded season was popular for three things: Caitlin Clark’s arrival, their WNBA playoff qualification, and the apparent issues between their star NaLyssa Smith and the franchise. While the world is celebrating Thanksgiving and the season is done and dusted, the fans can’t get over what they perceived as the insolence of Smith throughout the season. And hence when the Fever uploaded a post on the celebratory day, the sentiments from the fans certainly lingered.

On Thursday, the Fever uploaded a post on X for the festive season. It had the caricatures of Clark, Smith, Aliyah Boston, Kelsey Mitchell, and Lexie Hull, who can be seen running towards a banner held by Freddy Fever which reads “Happy Thanksgiving.”

“running, sprinting toward the dinner table 😋 happy thanksgiving Fever fans!” reads the caption. While the post was intended to bring joy, netizens could not take their eyes off the supposed hidden message. The inclusion of the five signified the core players for the Fever. But let’s just say fans aren’t all in if it is official.

Smith has repeatedly hinted at not being on par with the Fever management. She was picked as the second overall pick in the 2022 WNBA draft and was then considered to be Indiana’s future. However, with time, her role declined, and Fever #1 isn’t thrilled about it. This season she wasn’t given much time throughout the season with only 6.5 minutes per game during the playoffs.

Hence, when the Fever were eliminated and they posted a tweet lauding the Texas-born, she reshared the post with the caption “not too bad 4 a scrub 🙂‍↔️🙂‍↔️🙂‍↔️.” Smith had notably hit 10.6 points with 7.1 rebounds per game. “never imagined my 3rd year to go like this lol but i know there’s a lesson in every loss,” she had expressed after the Fever’s run ended. She had also added “#1out” which once again suggested her seeming disinterest in continuing with the team.

If that isn’t enough, the Fever enthusiasts are no fans of Smith’s girlfriend, DiJonai Carrington. The eye-poking incident and a clip of her allegedly mocking Clark have landed Smith on the wrong side of the Fever fans too. So they weren’t kind when the Thanksgiving poster included the forward.

Fans slam NaLyssa Smith’s inclusion

NaLyssa Smith is in contract with Indiana Fever until the 2025 season. But given the instances of disinterest, the franchise was expected to consider a departure. However, including the forward in the Fever 5 seemed to confirm that the management has no intentions of it. “Omg… i have a feeling the @IndianaFever are going to keep Naylissa Smith… tone def management, read the room…..its so obvious literally all of the Fever fanbase wants her gone,” one voiced.

“Why is Smith in the race,” another fan stated. Notably, Smith had played 40 games this season, starting in 36 of them, averaging 24.8 minutes per game on the court, and had managed 10.6 points per game. Fans seem to demand more.

Another chimed in with “can you remove nalyssa from the picture and the team. happy thanksgiving.” Well, Carrington seems to be on the same page. The Connecticut Suns star had taken the social media, enumerating “10 toes down for you❤️🤞🏽 #FreeHer.” While Smith and the Fever haven’t had anything to say about it yet, the fans are clear on their stance.

“You better get rid of Nalyssa Smith…” one more added, not very happy with the forward’s performance this season. Another user had a suggestion for replacement instead.

“Please airbrush NaLyssa and photoshop Satou into the photo,” the comment read. Sabally was a restricted free agent last summer and signed just a one-year deal to stay in Dallas. So she is expected not to continue with the Wings. Considering the Fever is looking for some experience and that the forward averaged 17.9 and 6.4 rebounds this past season, it is no surprise her name was brought up.

During the introductory press conference, the new President of Basketball & Business Operations, Kelly Krauskopf, had expressed, “I’m not going to tell you I know exactly what her future looks like. She’s a part of our team right now… My job is to make sure we put the best team on the floor,” referring to whatever was transpiring with Smith. So the situation remains uncertain yet.