Damiris Dantas

By Madie Chandler-Donahue

Position: Forward
Age: 32
Years Pro: 10
Signed: By the Fever on Feb. 1, 2024.
Key Stats: Averaged 4.6 points and 2.4 rebounds in 11.6 minutes per game through 38 regular season games.

Damiris Dantas completed her second season in a Fever uniform as a depth piece in the forward position backing up Aliyah Boston and Natasha Howard. A concussion held her out of all of Indiana’s postseason matchups, but Dantas’ services throughout the regular season were a key component to the Fever earning a playoff berth.

Dantas’ minutes ranged from two to 21 this season – a reflection of the constant flux of the roster due to injuries. She was most impactful as a floor-spacing rebounder, giving the Fever offense dimension as she stepped outside the 3-point line on offense and cleaned the glass on defense.

“My whole career I’ve loved kind of a smaller lineup,” coach Stephanie White said. “But at the same time, there are certain matchups that we can’t do that against…The ability to play even bigger with [Dantas] and [Boston] together, and be able to play off of one another, anytime you think about different kinds of matchups, potentially playing in series, you want to have different looks. And I think what we have right now, what we’re building, gives us the opportunity to do that.”

When the injury bug hit the Fever hard, Dantas’ availability and versatility shined. Her strength in the post allowed her to battle for rebounds while her finesse on offense provided several end-of-clock turnaround buckets.

Her best scoring game of the season came against the Connecticut Sun in mid-June. Dantas connected on two 3-pointers and was active around the basket as she worked her way to 13 points, two rebounds, and two assists in an 88-71 win over the Sun.

Dantas’ production didn’t stop when she stepped off the court. This year with the Fever marked her 10th season in the WNBA. Her experience as a veteran of the league gave wisdom to the Indiana locker room that had to cling together in the face of so much adversity.

“We have a veteran presence in the locker room that understands the ebbs and flows of a WNBA season,” White said. “That understands what it means to make sure that your body and your mind are ready every game. That understands what it takes from a recovery standpoint and rest standpoint.

“So I think having great resources and mentors in the locker room is really important for our team, and then that experience on the floor, of course, and understanding what it takes to compete at a high level and consistently day in and day out.”

Dantas took on that veteran role for Indiana, showing the rest of the locker room how to weather the storms of the league while remaining focused on the goal of winning games. The tight-knit group rode that wave all the way to the semifinals, just one game shy of a WNBA Finals appearance.

Dantas is not under contract with the Fever next season, and entered the offseason as a free agent. The Brazil native played the most WNBA games in her career this season as she logged minutes in 38 of Indiana’s 44 regular season contests. As the WNBA season and league continue to expand, Dantas’ skillset is in high demand.

But Dantas’ consistency remained critical in the Fever’s regular season campaign as they battled to a 24-20 record on the year.

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