Fever trainer Stephanie White reveals Caitlin Clark's motivation after a conversation

The talk of the women's basketball community in November is the Indiana Fever announcing on Friday that they have hired head coach Stephanie White.

White spent the last two seasons as head coach of the Connecticut Sun, where she compiled a 55-25 regular season record, won the 2023 WNBA Coach of the Year award and was one win away from getting her Sun team into the WNBA -Final to lead against the New York Liberty.

But that is now a thing of the past as White will lend her talents to a Fever team that looks to be a real championship contender in the coming years.

The key to Indiana's success last season was rookie guard Caitlin Clark, who orchestrated the Fever's lethal offense and helped propel them to their first WNBA playoff appearance since 2016.

During an interview with ESPN on Friday, White revealed that she spoke with Clark the night before her hiring was announced – and had high praise for the 22-year-old.

“I spoke to Caitlin last night and I think it was just general excitement,” White said when asked when the conversation between her and Clark took place. “I've been watching Caitlin play since she was an eighth grader… and it was just an exciting time for me. I’m really looking forward to working with her and this young team.”

White then talked about her and Clark wearing No. 22 while playing at Indiana, concluding the segment by saying, “I can’t wait. She's a student of the game, she loves the game of basketball, that's what she was.” Great how she handled all the attention.

“She just wants to play, she just wants to win. And I look forward to coaching players like that,” White added.

Clark's motivation to play and win appears to be bearing fruit next season.