Caitlin Clark has not played for the Indiana Fever since July 16, 2025, due to a groin injury. The All-Star guard is the heartthrob of the team’s offense, and her absence leaves a huge gap. Unfortunately, the Fevers have lost two more players to season-ending injuries.
The Fever announced on Friday that guard Sydney Colson will miss the rest of the season after being diagnosed with a torn left ACL. Moreover, another guard, Aari McDonald, has been ruled out for the remainder of the 2025 campaign due to a broken bone in her right foot.
With Clark’s return timetable not set, the Fever are without any pure point guard on their roster. Fortunately, they have found a temporary solution – Odyssey Sims.
Who Is Odyssey Sims?
The Fever signed Sims on Sunday to a hardship contract. Sims was the second pick of the 2014 WNBA draft by the Tulsa Shock, now rebranded as Dallas Wings. She played collegiate basketball for the Baylor Bears, winning the NCAA Division I Championship 2012.
Notably, she won the Nancy Lieberman Award, which is awarded to the best collegiate point guard, during her senior year in 2014. She was also recognized nationally as a two-time First-Team All-American by the Associated Press in 2013 and 2014; a three-time WBCA Coaches’ All-American in 2012, 2013, and 2014; a three-time USBWA All-American in 2012, 2013, and 2014; and an AP Second-Team All-American in 2012.
In Big 12 play, Sims was the 2014 Big 12 Player of the Year and Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, earning First-Team All-Big 12 honors all four seasons from 2011 to 2014, and making the Big 12 All-Defensive Team three times from 2012 to 2014.
In the WNBA, she was named an All-Star, earned All-WNBA Second Team honors in 2019, and made the WNBA All-Rookie Team in 2014. Her career has featured stints with multiple teams over a decade in the league.
She began her professional journey with the Shock in 2014 and stayed with the franchise until it relocated to become the Wings, playing there until 2016.
2017 the Wings traded her to the Los Angeles Sparks, where she played two seasons. In 2019, the Sparks traded Sims to the Minnesota Lynx, where she played two seasons before spending the 2021 season with the Atlanta Dream. She returned to Minnesota in 2022, also suiting for the Connecticut Sun later that year.
Sims rejoined the Dallas Wings in 2023, playing two seasons before returning to the Los Angeles Sparks in 2024. In 2025, she re-signed with the Spark, who waived her in early July. She has joined her new team on a hardship contract.
What Is A Hardship Contract?
In the WNBA, a hardship contract allows teams to temporarily add players to their roster when they face a shortage of active players due to injuries or illness.
Teams can receive a hardship contract if they don’t have a minimum of 10 available players. These contracts help teams maintain a sufficient roster to play games. Hardship contracts are usually short-term, often seven days, but can be renewed. Players earn a minimum salary based on their experience.
Even though the WNBA has a hard salary cap, teams can exceed it with a hardship exception. The player’s salary still counts towards the cap, but the team can go over the limit.
