Kelsey Mitchell delivered a stamp of approval for Aari McDonald, hailing the shifty guard's impact for the Indiana Fever in Caitlin Clark's absence. After McDonald, who is signed to a $72,414 contract, registered her third consecutive double-digit scoring game on Friday against the Wings, Mitchell lauded her emergence."This is our blessing in disguise," Mitchell told reporters. "Our season was all over the place with the people that's on the team, the people that wasn't on the team. Injury, you know, 22 (Caitlin Clark) not being around as much with her injuries. It takes a lot for a pro to step up and be where her feet is and step in, fill in shoes that not a lot of people expect."McDonald wasn't in the team's offseason plans and remained a free agent until Indiana scrambled for depth at point guard following Clark's quad injury late in May. Sophie Cunningham's ankle injury made things worse for the Fever.Indiana signed McDonald to a hardship contract, but released her once players returned from injury. It looked like another team would snap up the opportunity to pick her up, but it was the Fever who came calling once again following another setback for Clark.DeWanna Bonner's decision to leave the team also opened the door for the Fever to sign McDonald to a permanent deal. Fever coming into their own without Caitlin Clark as Kelsey Mitchell and others find their feetThe Indiana Fever's season has not gone as expected. They were expected to take the 2025 WNBA season by storm as Caitlin Clark entered her second season. However, there have been questions about their championship credentials. Clark's injuries and the lack of execution in the first half of the season had the Fever scrambling. One of their marquee free agent signings, DeWanna Bonner, leaving the team didn't help their cause. Nevertheless, the Fever have come into their own in recent weeks. Kelsey Mitchell, Aliyah Boston and Aari McDonald have been exceptional since the All-Star break, with Indiana going 4-1 and improving to 16-12 on the season.They are four games above the .500 mark for the first time in a decade. Not many would have seen this coming with how their season started. This run has also allowed the Fever to provide Caitlin Clark time to recover from a right groin injury, her third ailment this season after a left groin and quad issue.