After a string of season-ending injuries, the Fever brought in three new players: Odyssey Sims, Shey Peddy, and Aerial Powers. Sims and Peddy filled the obvious point-guard-shaped hole on the roster that was created when Aari McDonald and Sydney Colson both suffered season-ending injuries in the same game. Powers, who was the last of the three to join the team, filled another need.
After the Fever’s win over the Lynx to close out the season, Stephanie White said about the latest addition to her roster, “I love that she is a big strong guard because, really, Lexie [Hull] is our only big guard that we have now.”
Lexie Hull, Sophie Cunningham, and Caitlin Clark are all 6’0” or taller. They are also all strong rebounders at the guard and wing spots. Hull averaged 4.3 rebounds over 44 games, and Cunningham grabbed 3.5 rebounds per game in the 30 contests she played this season. Clark averaged 5 rebounds over the 13 games she played this season and 5.7 as a rookie.
With Cunningham and Clark out, the Fever’s rebounding at the guard and wing positions dropped significantly, which is not ideal for the playoffs.
Aerial Powers has rebounded well since joining the Fever
At 5’11”, Aerial Powers may not be quite as big as Clark and Cunningham, but she is still a good rebounder for her position. Powers has played 200 regular-season games in the WNBA and averages 3.4 rebounds per game. Her rebounding prowess has been on full display with the Fever.
Powers suited up for eight regular-season games with the Fever. Over that stretch, she grabbed 37 rebounds. Only two players got their hands on more boards over the last eight games: Aliyah Boston and Natasha Howard. The two bigs grabbed 64 and 47 rebounds, respectively.
The only guard who came close to matching Powers’s rebounding total over the last eight games is Lexie Hull with 34.
Aerial Powers is a solid backup for the Fever
Powers also shot the three well, converting 36.8% of her attempts with the Fever. Her ability to rebound, space the floor, and score reliably makes her the perfect backup for Hull. Despite being a late addition to the roster, Powers played 160 total minutes over the last eight games in the regular season—the sixth most on the roster. Only the starters logged more minutes, highlighting Powers’ importance to the short-handed Fever.
Powers will likely play significant minutes in the playoffs as well.