On Tuesday morning, the Indiana Fever announced that center Damiris Dantas underwent a successful surgery to repair the torn meniscus in her left knee.
As a result, Dantas will miss the remainder of this season.
Dantas hadn't played in a Fever game since July 17 and is only averaging 8.2 minutes per game in the 12 Fever contests she has played in this season. She's also averaging just 3.3 minutes per game, which is the lowest in her career.
Still, losing Dantas (who hadn't been with the team in recent weeks) is a tough blow for a Fever roster that has remained relatively healthy to this point in the season, if only because she was Aliyah Boston's backup at center (aside from Monique Billings , who is the starting power forward but serves as the Fever's second center).
Not having Dantas available only adds more to Aliyah Boston's load. She was already playing 26.8 minutes per game, but will continue to have to put the Fever's frontcourt on her back even more than before.
The silver lining is that Dantas' primary impact on offense was as a three-point shooter, as she provided value as a big who could space the floor. Boston has done a wonderful job of spacing the floor herself this season, as shown by her 44.4% three-point percentage. This is likely why Dantas' minutes and role have diminished.
Still, not having Dantas as a potential option for when Boston needs a break isn't ideal.
This also adds some insight into why the Fever signed Michelle Onyiah to their final development contract spot last week. Onyiah is also a center, which means that her role has a chance of expanding if the Fever decide to elevate her to the active roster in the wake of Dantas' surgery.
Or the Fever could elevate Bree Hall , who currently holds their other player development spot. And since there's a strong case to be made that Indiana needs more help on the wing than in the frontcourt, elevating Hall would be the most pertinent move at this point.
Also important to note is that the new WNBA Collective Bargaining Agreement allows for a season-ending injury exemption, where teams are given extra salary cap flexibility to add another player in case someone on their active roster suffers a season-ending injury.
Therefore, it seems that the Fever will be able to sign a replacement player, which could come in the next few days.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/wnba/fever as Damiris Dantas' Season-Ending Injury Adds to Aliyah Boston's Load .
