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The Indiana Fever have made their final roster cut ahead of their season opener against the Chicago Sky on Saturday. They cut three players last week: No. 20 pick Bree Hall, No. 33 pick Yvonne Ejim and veteran guard Jillian Alleyne.
Because of salary cap restrictions, speculation surfaced that one of No. 19 pick Makayla Timpson or Jaelyn Brown would be cut as well.
Coach Stephanie White and the organization decided to roll with the promising rookie, meaning that there was no more room for Brown on the roster.
Needless to say, fans didn't appreciate this gesture, and they took to social media to call out the organization for this decision.
Here are some of the best reactions:
Trending
"Tough choice… I like kk but she will be picked up soon and I’m wishing her the best in her future endeavors," one fan said.
"Best of luck to Jaelyn! Salary caps be damned. She was pretty good out there and I wish we could keep her," another one chimed in.
"She wasn’t that great but another instance of vets staying on a team when their prime is up or they never had a prime and letting the young players go," one fan continued.
Others still hope she will make the team at some point:
"Jaelyn better stay ready!!! Fever will pick her up in a few weeks," one fan said.
"Nooooo😩😩 I hope they can bring her back next month," another one added.
Brown played for the Dallas Wings last season, averaging 2.6 points in 10.1 minutes a night. She was a part of the four-team trade that landed Sophie Cunningham in Indiana and sent NaLyssa Smith to the Wings.
The Fever could've technically kept Brown to start the season, as their roster now sits at 11 players instead of the maximum of 12. Then again, given their salary cap limitations, they needed to make this move.
On a more positive note, at least one of the team's rookies will make the roster, although, given how much veteran leadership and firepower they have, there might not be a lot of touches for Makayla Timpson early on in her career.
Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White gushes about Caitlin Clark's maturity
The Fever went to great lengths to add more experience and proven talent to their team.
They returned to the playoffs last season, and they know what kind of special talent they have in Caitlin Clark, so they needed to double down on her by surrounding her with the talent she needed to succeed.
That's something you can afford to do when your young star proves to be ready for the spotlight. With that in mind, coach Stephanie White praised her for her maturity and work ethic.
"She's far beyond her years in terms of her understanding of how to work," White told ESPN. "Oftentimes you see rookies, even the great ones, where it usually takes three years for them to figure it out. She's got it figured out."
This team is just getting started, and while keeping everybody together might be tough because of the salary cap, they could be very good for a very long time.
