Indiana Fever Fire General Manager Amber Cox After Two Seasons

The Indiana Fever have dismissed general manager and chief operating officer Amber Cox after two seasons, according to reports from The Athletic, confirmed by IndyStar on Friday, October 23, 2026. The move comes the same day team president Kelly Krauskopf stepped down — a full front-office reset for the Caitlin Clark-era Fever.

What We Know / What We Don’t Know

What we know:

• The Indiana Fever have fired general manager Amber Cox, sources told The Athletic’s Annie Costabile on Friday, October 23, 2026, a report IndyStar confirmed Friday afternoon. The Fever have not yet issued an official public announcement.
• Cox was hired following the 2024 season to replace Lin Dunn, who moved into a special advisor role. Cox came to Indiana from the Dallas Wings, where she had been chief operating officer.
• Indiana finished sixth in the WNBA standings in both the 2025 and 2026 seasons — back-to-back playoff appearances, including a semifinal run in 2025 — but showed no meaningful improvement in the standings.
• The 2026 season ended with a first-round playoff exit at the hands of the Las Vegas Aces, in three games.
• Cox’s tenure included the Aliyah Boston four-year contract extension worth $6.3 million — widely seen as a strong move — and the signing of veteran guard Sophie Cunningham.
• Team president Kelly Krauskopf stepped down from her role the same day, after nearly 30 years with Pacers Sports & Entertainment.

What we don’t know:

• The Fever have not publicly stated a reason for Cox’s dismissal, and the team has not yet announced a replacement.
• Whether head coach Stephanie White’s position is under review; several commentators have called for broader changes, but no reporting confirms a decision.
• Whether the firings are connected to the reported internal scrutiny of roster construction after the new collective bargaining agreement ahead of the 2026 season.
• Which candidates the Fever will pursue; IndyStar’s early follow-up names Portland Fire assistant coach and general manager Brittni Donaldson among options, but no shortlist is official.

Key Facts

The Move: A Two-Year Tenure Ends

The Indiana Fever dismissed general manager Amber Cox on Friday, ending a two-season tenure that coincided with one of the most scrutinized stretches in franchise history. The Athletic’s Annie Costabile was first to report the firing; IndyStar confirmed the news Friday afternoon through its own sources.

Cox joined the Fever after the 2024 season, succeeding Lin Dunn, who transitioned to a special-advisor role. She arrived from the Dallas Wings, where she had served as chief operating officer — a hire that, at the time, paired a respected business executive with a franchise suddenly operating under the brightest spotlight in women’s basketball.

That spotlight, of course, is Caitlin Clark. The Fever’s 2024 No. 1 draft pick has drawn record audiences, sellouts and unprecedented media attention to Indiana. But on-court progress stalled during Cox’s watch: the Fever finished sixth in the league in both 2025 and 2026, reaching the playoffs both years — including a memorable run to Game Five of the 2025 WNBA semifinals — before bowing out in the first round this season to the Las Vegas Aces.

Why Now: Roster Construction Under the Microscope

According to IndyStar’s analysis, the Fever’s front office judged that the team failed to make meaningful progress in the standings despite rostering three All-Stars in Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell, and that the roster around them was not built to contend.

Several of Cox’s contract decisions drew heavy criticism. Before the 2025 season, the Fever signed veteran DeWanna Bonner to a $200,000 contract, presenting her as the veteran presence the young roster needed. Bonner played only nine games in Indiana before leaving the team for personal reasons; Indiana waived her after being unable to find a trade partner.

Following the new collective bargaining agreement ahead of the 2026 season, Cox also negotiated multiyear contracts for players who, in the front office’s assessment, did not live up to the size of those deals, per IndyStar. Those commitments, combined with a roster that never secured home-court advantage in either postseason, appear to have sealed her fate.

The Counterpoint: A Masterclass in Crisis Management

The full picture of Cox’s tenure is more complicated — and her supporters point to 2025 as evidence of real front-office skill. That season, the Fever endured six season-ending injuries, including one to Caitlin Clark herself. Cox found productive replacement players unsigned midseason — Odyssey Sims, Aerial Powers and Shey Peddy — who were essential to Indiana’s improbable run to Game Five of the WNBA semifinals. Without those moves, the season could have collapsed entirely.

And her signature move may have been her best: the four-year, $6.3 million contract extension for Aliyah Boston, which keeps the 2023 No. 1 pick under contract with the Fever through the 2029 season. Boston’s EPIC deal is one of the most important contracts in franchise history — a foundation piece any future general manager will build around.

Cox also defended the franchise’s famously passionate fan base publicly. At the team’s end-of-season press conference on October 3, she pushed back against criticism of Fever supporters, saying “the attacks on our fan base have no basis in reality and they need to stop” — a statement that drew a strong response online and within the WNBA.

The Same-Day Departure: Krauskopf Steps Down

The Cox firing is only half of Friday’s story. Team president Kelly Krauskopf stepped down the same day after nearly 30 years with Pacers Sports & Entertainment, ending a career that began before the Fever played their first game in 2000. Krauskopf informed leadership of her decision before the end of the 2026 regular season, according to the team’s announcement.

That leaves Indiana with simultaneous vacancies at president and general manager — the two most important basketball-operations roles in the organization — as the franchise heads into a pivotal offseason with Caitlin Clark entering year four of her rookie-scale deal. Read our full report on Krauskopf’s departure: Indiana Fever President Kelly Krauskopf Steps Down After Nearly 30 Years.

What’s Next: The Search Begins

The Fever will need to move quickly. Indiana has a busy offseason ahead: building a contender around Clark, Boston and Mitchell, navigating the new salary structure, and filling the leadership vacuum at the top of the front office.

IndyStar’s early look at candidates names Brittni Donaldson of the Portland Fire — an assistant coach who also holds a general manager role — as one out-of-the-box option whose dual experience in coaching and roster construction could appeal to a franchise seeking fresh perspective. Other names will surface in the coming days, but no official shortlist has been reported.

For a franchise that has spent two years learning how to handle unprecedented attention, Friday’s reset is a gamble: the Fever are betting that new leadership can do what the current regime could not — turn the Clark-era spotlight into wins. The next hire, whoever it is, will inherit the same challenge Amber Cox faced: a generational star, a passionate fan base, and a clock that is already ticking.

Sources

• The Athletic (Annie Costabile), first report of Cox’s firing, Oct. 23, 2026 — as carried by theScore (https://www.thescore.com/wnba/news/3632669/report-fever-fire-gm-amber-cox-after-2-seasons)
• IndyStar (https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/basketball/wnba/fever/2026/10/23/indiana-fever-fire-general-manager-amber-cox-failed-roster-build-caitlin-clark-aliyah-boston/91996928007/) — confirmation and analysis of roster construction, Oct. 23, 2026
• IndyStar (https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/basketball/wnba/fever/2026/10/23/indiana-fever-general-manager-candidates-amber-cox-brittni-donaldson-clare-duwelius-jamila-wideman/92030392007/) — early general manager candidates, Oct. 23, 2026
• New York Post — Oct. 3 coverage of Cox’s fan-base defense (background context)

Editor’s note: At the time of writing, the Fever had not issued an official public announcement of Cox’s departure. This article is based on reporting by The Athletic and IndyStar; it will be updated when the team’s statement is released.