INDIANAPOLIS — WRTV's Amber Grigley sat down with two Indiana Fever players who know what that moment of being drafted is like, both
drafted in the first round by the Fever. The players shared their experience and how they will welcome Caitlin Clark to the Fever.
"When I was little, I mean, I saw it, but I never really thought that it could be me," Lexie Hull, Guard for the Indiana Fever said.
"It was always like the dream for me, but it seemed really far off and unrealistic for me to ever achieve," Grace Berger, Guard for the Indiana Fever said.
A vision that scored beyond their wildest dreams.
"And then I hear Stanford Guard Lexi Hull, and it was honestly like the coolest moment," Hull said.
In 2022, the Indiana Fever drafted Lexie Hull in the first round, the 6th overall pick.
A year later in 2023, Grace Berger was drafted in the first round, 7th overall pick.
"You don't really know going into the night where you're going to get drafted. I was super nervous," Berger said.
Getting drafted in the WNBA is one of the hardest tasks in professional US sports. The WNBA has a maximum of 144 roster spots available across all teams. While the NBA can have a maximum of 541 potential roster spots.
"The WNBA is great. I'm living my dream right now," Berger said.
Both Lexie and Grace know first-hand the pressure that comes with rookie year debuts.
"I would say be a sponge, I think it's super important. There are incredible players that were also number-one draft picks the best player on their college team. And there's so much knowledge on every team in the WNBA," Hull said.
It's this knowledge that the Fever has been able to capitalize on, now two years in a row.
In 2023, the Fever held the first overall draft pick selecting South Carolina’s star Aliyah Boston, three-time All-American.
"It was just really interesting to see how much she had on her shoulders being the number one pick. I realized from the first game even from entering training camp with her the amount of pressure that was on her, but she handled it with such grace," Berger said.
And this year, the stakes are high yet again with the Fever drafting Caitlyn Clark as their first overall pick.
"I’m so excited that we get the number one pick again, now they'll have someone that so recently handled it so well obviously became an All-Star in her rookie year," Berger said.
A roster that makes the Indiana Fever one of the most talked about teams in the league.
"We're just ready to get to work ready to get playing and excited for the draft and then excited for our first game," Hull said.
"I’d say hop on the bandwagon now because it's going to be an exciting, an exciting couple years to be a Fever fan," Berger said.
