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Fever Executive breaks silence on not protecting Temi Fagbenle during expansion draft despite camaraderie with Caitlin Clark
After just one season with the Indiana Fever, Temi Fagbenle was selected as the Golden State Valkyries' pick from Fever's 2024 roster in the WNBA's expansion draft. Regarded as an integral locker room presence, a reliable role player in the Indiana fold, and her great camaraderie with Caitlin Clark, it was a massive surprise that the Center found a new home just after a year.
Speaking on "In Case You Missed It with Khristina Williams," Fever GM Amber Cox explained the decision behind letting Fagbenle go as part of a plan.
"You know, it's part of an overall plan. Which, hopefully, everybody will see unfold during the offseason. The expansion draft is difficult. It's hard to lose a player. Six is not very many when you think about protecting anybody on your roster. And this group obviously built great camaraderie in the second half of the season, so that was not an easy decision. But again, part of a bigger plan that I hope everyone will get to see unfold as we get into the rest of the offseason."
Temi Fagbenle won the WNBA championship in 2017 as part of the Minnesota Lynx. She ended her season with Indiana averaging 6.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.7 blocks. She played 22 contests for the Fever before an injury sidelined her for a good chunk of games.
Caitlin Clark bids emotional adieu to Temi Fagbenle after Valkyries move
Caitlin Clark was one of the key names addressing Temi Fagbenle's departure. Soon after she was picked by the Valkyries, Fagbenle took to Instagram to say goodbye:
"To my teammates: we had a season of revelations and growth. So proud of y'all for persevering. Thank you for lifting me and each other. F the noise. Keep growing together. Thank you for the consistent energy, Indy fans. Y'all are solid 🔥🙏🏾."
To which Clark responded:
"Love ya tem! Gonna miss you ❤️"
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Valkyries confirmed that they had selected Temi Fagbenle in the draft along with 10 more players. The expansion draft was held to help Golden State build the roster ahead of the 2025 WNBA season. Owned by Golden State Warriors' Joe Lacob, the Valkyries are the 13th team in the league
The rest of the roster includes Iliana Rupert, Kate Martin, Maria Conde, Veronica Burton, Carla Leite, Stephanie Talbot, Cecilia Zandslisini, Kayla Thornton, Monique Billings and Julie Vanloo.
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