Fever veteran Kelsey Mitchell reminds everyone why she's "the ultimate pro" while reaching milestone in 83-71 win over Atlanta
With Indiana leading the Atlanta Dream by nine late in the third quarter, the game simply needed an exclamation point with the run the Fever were on.
Leave it to their longtime leader.
Kelsey Mitchell stripped the freshly named Eastern Conference Player of the Month, Allisha Gray, overlooked teammate Sophie Cunningham cutting down the lane to the basket, and calmly pulled up from 23-feet, 9 inches to drain a 3-pointer.
The smooth-as-butter shot not only put Indiana up 58-46, but it put the veteran guard over 5,000 career WNBA points.
Behind 11 consecutive points in the third quarter, Mitchell finished with a game-high 25 points to lead the Fever to a much-needed 83-71 victory over the Dream, snapping a two-game skid in the process.
The crafty three-level threat terrorized Atlanta's defenders, scoring off the dribble, shooting off the pick-and-roll, or firing off the catch-and-shoot while turning in yet another dominating effort for her storied and oft-overshadowed career.
And how did she do so against what's been one of the stingiest scoring defenses in the WNBA?
"I just think letting the game flow," Mitchell said. "For one, you gotta love it, and you gotta appreciate what the game brings. I think I just try to keep myself in that focus."
It was her fifth game this season with 21 or more points, and more than anything, reminded everyone who's been the backbone of this franchise since being drafted second overall behind A'ja Wilson in 2018.
"She's just the ultimate pro," Fever coach Stephanie White said. "She's a pro's pro. She doesn't get too high, she doesn't get too low. When she uses her voice, it matters; it resonates. She's been through a lot in this league, and she understands situations, and she understands moments.
"So for her to just be a steadying influence for our team is important."
BEING HUMBLE
"Being humble means recognizing that we are not on earth to see how important we can become, but to see how much difference we can make in the lives of others."
Gordon B. Hinckley wasn't referencing Mitchell with those words many years ago, but they certainly fit.
Now sitting with 5,003 points, Mitchell is the second player in franchise history to top the 5,000-point plateau, behind all-time great Tamika Catchings (7,380).
Resembling White's description of staying even-keeled, Mitchell kept things in perspective when hearing her name uttered in the same sentence as Indiana's greatest player ever.
"Anytime I hear Tamika Catchings, I get humble," Mitchell said. "I think that for me, it's less about the accolade and more about the journey and the process. I can recall what it looked like and what I thought it was gonna look like when it wasn't so great for me. And so I try to keep a fine line of being excited, but also humble because I know what it was like and what work can do, and I'm just gonna try to keep doing that."
Mitchell's loyalty to the franchise during so many dreadful seasons is a testament to the dedication she's had toward her craft and the players around her.
"Kelsey is one of the biggest pieces of this franchise," 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year Aliyah Boston said. "I mean, Kelsey was here before we got here, continued to give it her all, continued to show up every single day, and we see that example in front of us. And so to see her get all these accomplishments and pass all these milestones, it's just so amazing as a teammate, because I show up and Kelsey shows up every day.
"It doesn't matter what's happening in her world; she just shows up, and she gives us everything. And so for me, it just makes me so excited to have a leader and a role model in Kelsey."
Mitchell wasn't shy in reciprocating the compliments for her teammates.
"I think over time, the organization started investing and put really big pieces around me," said Mitchell, whose 5,003 points rank second in the WNBA to only Wilons since she entered the league. "I'm only as good as the people around me, so having Aliyah Boston, and having Caitlin Clark, and Lexie Hull, and the young group that came in over the course of the years has kind of helped me be who I am.
"I don't think I would be in this position without such a great group."
"It just makes me so excited to have like a leader and a role model in Kelsey."
Aliyah Boston showers Kelsey Mitchell with love after reaching 5,000 career points ❤️ pic.twitter.com/kqgMTle6hp
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) June 5, 2026
GAME RECOGNIZES GAME
If there is one player in the WNBA who knows and understands the nuances of nearly every guard she'll have to face, it's two-time WNBA champion and four-time All-Star Kelsey Plum of the Los Angeles Sparks.
The 2022 All-Star MVP has a full-on scouting report on Mitchell, someone Plum has been inspired by long before the Fever drafted her out of Ohio State second overall behind Wilson.
"She's an absolute baller," Plum said. "Kelsey is someone that I've gotten the pleasure to play against throughout, just growing up playing basketball."
The two played overseas against one another and, obviously, have established a tremendous competitive nature when facing each other in the WNBA.
Yet Mitchell, who's led the franchise in scoring in seven of her nine seasons, continues to be someone who hasn't necessarily gotten the credit she's deserved over the years.
"But she doesn't ever, like, you don't hear her chirping," Plum said. "She knows who she is, and she's solid in her foundation. I just really respect that.
"And you earn a lot of respect from the league and from your peers when you watch people day in, day out go to work. I can't say enough. I just absolutely adore her."
W.G. Ramirez is a veteran sports writer from Las Vegas and a Senior Staff Writer at Ballislife.com. Follow him on X at @WillieGRamirez
