Temi Fagbenle should replace NaLyssa Smith in the starting lineup, journalist argues ahead of Fever-Sun playoff showdown 

Temi Fagbenle and the Indiana Fever are hours away from playing their first WNBA playoff game since 2016 and the expectations on them are huge, to say the least. With Caitlin Clark leading the squad, they finished with a 20-20 record and clinched the sixth seed.

Now, the details will matter the most and Jim Turvey of The Action Network said on Friday that he believes that Christie Sides should give more minutes to Fagbenle which will give her team a better chance of eliminating the Connecticut Sun and advance to the second round.

"I find this incredibly interesting, so of the net ratings of any five-person unit with at least 50 minutes played, the top unit is from the Indiana Fever," Turvey said. "It's Temi Fagbenle, Kelsey Mitchell, [Lexie Hull], Aliyah Boston, Caitlin Clark. Temi Fagbenle missed a large chunk of the season and NaLyssa Smith, this is not a good matchup for her."

"Even though she's got DiJonai, her partner, on the other side, it's not a great matchup for NaLyssa Smith. She thrives against a team like Dallas, she's gonna do great against them, but really struggles against Connecticut."

Turvey added that Fagbenle could still play off the bench but still get a lot of playing time:

"I would love to see a lot of minutes for Temi Fagbenle," Turvey said. "Even if NaLyssa starts but then we get a lot of Temi minutes, I think that's very good news for the Fever. Those five have been really really successful on the court together and in the postseason, you can kind of lean more on your best lineups."

How has Indiana Fever's veteran Temi Fagbenle has fared against the Sun this season?

Fagbenle indeed had to deal with health issues and missed a big part of the season. She missed a game against the Sun during her absence, which allowed Smith to post more points than in four previous matchups. Smith averaged 9.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 blocks per game against the Sun while Fagbenle, who played one game less, posted 5.0 ppg, 5.7 rpg and 0.3 apg.

But when it comes to effectiveness, Temi made 70% of her field goal attempts and 100% of her free throws while Smith converted 40.6% from the field and 81.8% from the free throw line. Additionally, the number that shows a clear difference between the two against the Sun is that Smith posted a -10.8 plus-minus while Fagbenle recorded +6.7.

The Fever will face the Sun in a best-of-three series and making this adjustment could go a long way for them.