"Do we say f**k it" - Fever veteran opens up on expectations from Caitlin Clark & other teammates after rough start to season

Indiana Fever veteran Temi Fagbenle has a message to the team's young players like Caitlin Clark amid their 1-6 start to the season. Fagbenle wants Clark and the rest of the youngsters to keep their focus and continue fighting for wins in a tough WNBA campaign.

In the Fever's media availability after Monday's practice, the 31-year-old Fagbenle was asked about the team's maturity. She wants young players to understand that it's a long season, so there will always be adversity. It's about their response to it, and she wants to see it with their actions.

"When adversity hits, how do you respond? Do we hang our heads? Do we not give each other high fives or eye contact anymore? Do we say, 'F*ck it. I'm just going to play selfishly?'" Fagbenle said. [8:49 onwards]

"Or we rise to the occasion and stick to what we know we need to do and that's to be a solid team? We know the schemes, stick with the schemes instead of thinking we know better individually or anything right. So that just comes with time and experience and so the more we have that, the better we're going to be. I'm looking forward to what we can achieve as a team," she added.

The Indiana Fever are off to a 1-6 start to the season, with a really condensed schedule. They will play their eighth game of the campaign on Tuesday against the LA Sparks. The only team they beat this season was the Sparks late last week at the Crypto.com Arena.

Kelsey Mitchell led the way for the Fever in their 78-73 win over the Sparks, finishing with 18 points, two rebounds and two assists. Aliyah Boston had her best game of the season with 17 points and six rebounds, while Tami Fagbenle added 17 points, six rebounds and three assists off the bench.

Caitlin Clark had a near triple-double of 11 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. She's still struggling with her shots and turnovers but continues to make progress every game.

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A'ja Wilson defends Caitlin Clark from critics

A'ja Wilson defends Caitlin Clark from critics.

Two-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson was one of the veteran players who seemingly took a shot at Cailtin Clark before the start of the season.

However, Wilson reckons the critics got it all wrong, and she has nothing but praise for the rookie. She also defended the Indiana Fever star from people unhappy with her performance.

"She's a 22-year-old woman with a lot of pressure. She’s not perfect. She’s a rookie in this league. ... Back off," Wilson said. [H/T Yahoo! Sports]

A'ja Wilson wants critics to back off Caitlin Clark, but she didn't on the court, dropping 29 points and 15 rebounds in the Las Vegas Aces' 99-80 win over the Indiana Fever on Saturday.