'The ultimate pro.' How Fever rookie Makayla Timpson stays ready for big moments — and delivers

Indianapolis Star

6 days ago

CHICAGO – Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White has a mantra: Stay ready so you don't have to get ready.
And that's something Fever rookie Makayla Timpson embodies. On days she doesn't play, she's still ready to come off the bench at any time, hyping up her teammates on the sidelines. On the days she plays significant minutes, she delivers.
'She's really done a great job of staying ready,' White said. '... One of the benefits of having a deep team is that if you don't have it one night, somebody else does. One of the challenges of having a deep team is that people deserve to play, but they don't always get to play. And KK has been ready, and she continues to get better.'
Sunday was one of those days.
It was an afternoon the coaching staff put its trust in her, hoping her size and versatility as a stretch four would help the Fever against the lengthy Sky. Timpson played a career-high 22 minutes at the United Center and produced a career-high 14 points.
'It means a lot,' Timpson said of the trust the coaching staff has in her. 'You know, it just puts a lot of confidence in me, and also my teammates, I mean, they have my back and they encourage me each and every practice, each and every game, just to stay ready and stay focused. I just wanted to be who they need me to be out on the court.'
Timpson got multiple DNP-Coach's Decision games at the beginning of the season, but she didn't let that deter her. As a rookie coming into a team with multiple established frontcourt veterans like Aliyah Boston, Natasha Howard and Damiris Dantas, that's something to be expected.
But Timpson, the No. 19 pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, didn't come into the league with the expectation of playing significant minutes. She knows that comes with time and effort; it comes from consistently showing her teammates, both in practice and in the minutes she's able to get on the court, she is someone who can be relied on.
So far, she's won over her teammates.
'She's one of the best rookies I think I've ever come across of,' three-time All-Star Kelsey Mitchell said. 'I say she's like the ultimate pro, shows up, no problems. And I think when you have locker room culture happening, you need great people to make it greater. And I think we got a good addition here.'
As the season has gone on, Timpson's minutes have been steadily increasing. She broke into the rotation when Dantas was away from the team for five games for the FIBA AmeriCup in late June and early July, and her heads-up defense and versatile playmaking earned her minutes even after Dantas returned.
She paired well with new addition Chloe Bibby, who just signed a seven-day contract with the Fever on Friday, for a lot of the game. The two held down the frontcourt, especially as starting forward Natasha Howard was having an off day.
Dantas, whose minutes have been dwindling since she returned from AmeriCup, did not enter the game as Bibby scored eight points on 2-of-4 3-point shooting in the first half.
Bibby and Timpson especially excelled playing through the Sky's zone defense, which lent itself to putting more shooters around Boston in the middle.
'More than anything, they're playing zone, and so bringing in Chloe early and having four shooters around AB was, was important,' White said. 'With KK, it was going with her early just to see what she could give us on the defensive end. I felt like they got too many easy looks. KK's versatility allows us to play her defensively in a different way than we can play DD. And then they had it rolling in the first half, and so we just stayed with that nine.'
Putting significant time into developing Timpson, a player with a lot of potential, should bode well for the Fever's future. Timpson, who is on a rookie contract, is one of three players signed to the Fever's roster in 2026 (along with Boston and Caitlin Clark, also on rookie contracts).
The new collective bargaining agreement, which is still being negotiated and will take effect ahead of the 2026 season, is expected to exponentially increase contracts, including the rookie scale. But, historically, it hasn't affected already existing rookie contracts.
So, the Fever should expect to have Timpson for the next three seasons under the currently existing rookie scale, which will be much cheaper than the contracts in the new CBA. And if she can develop into a consistent rotation (or even starting) player, that would be a steal for Indiana.