BREAKING — Indiana Fever Staffer Hit With Stunning Career News… and the Locker Room Erupted
Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White spent the 2025 WNBA season leaning heavily on a coaching staff that quietly turned into one of the most effective units in the league. With Karima Christmas-Kelly, Austin Kelly and Briann January beside her, White steered an injury-ravaged Fever squad to a Commissioner’s Cup title in July and punched a playoff ticket with a gritty 24–20 record.
They did it while missing Caitlin Clark — the franchise cornerstone who appeared in only 13 games because of injuries — and they still forced the eventual champion Las Vegas Aces into a brutal, exhausting five-game semifinal series. For a team that spent most of the season shorthanded, Indiana’s 2025 campaign wasn’t just admirable — it was improbable.
But Monday delivered a different kind of headline for the Fever: one that didn’t involve a box score, a press conference, or a game-deciding possession. One of White’s most trusted assistants just received the biggest honor of her career, and the reaction across the WNBA was instantaneous.
Karima Christmas-Kelly — a key member of Indiana’s staff since 2023 — is heading back to Houston for a night that will cement her legacy. J. Frank Dobie High School, the place where her basketball journey began, announced that it will honor her accomplishments with a special banner reveal scheduled for Friday at 5 p.m. local time.
Christmas-Kelly broke the news herself on social media, posting a short, powerful message that sent former teammates, current players and fans rushing to comment:
“For the LOVE of the game. 🏀🧡🖤 11/14/25.”
Dobie High School confirmed the celebration in its announcement, noting that Christmas-Kelly was part of “the only girls basketball team to make it to state” in school history. Now, years later, they’re bringing her home to honor the kind of career that rarely gets the spotlight it deserves.
And the Fever family wasted no time flooding her with love.
“Congratsss Rima ❤️❤️” wrote Aliyah Boston.
“yeahhhh Rima 🙌🏽🔥” added rookie Makayla Timpson.
“Yesss Rimaaaa 👏🏽🔥” chimed in Aerial Powers.
Even the official Fever account dropped a celebratory “👏👏.”
Hall of Famer Seimone Augustus joined in: “Congrats Rima!!!”
Dozens of fans followed: “Most deserved!!!” “🔥🔥🔥” “Such an icon.”
For those who followed Christmas-Kelly’s career, the recognition is long overdue. After dominating at Dobie, she became a standout at Duke from 2007 to 2011 before entering the 2011 WNBA Draft as a second-round pick. Her decade-long pro career took her through Washington, Tulsa/Dallas and Minnesota, and she even spent three seasons with the Fever — including the franchise’s 2012 championship run.
Across 243 games, she averaged 7.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.1 steals — numbers that only hint at her toughness, leadership and longevity.
Now, as an assistant coach helping guide the Fever into a new era, her influence is hitting another peak. And this week’s honor isn’t just a celebration of where she came from — it’s a reminder of how much she still means to the sport.
Indiana may be chasing a title, but on Friday night in Houston, the spotlight belongs to Karima Christmas-Kelly.
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