Indianapolis, Aug. 14 - Granted, she's been a little busy for the past few months, allowing precious little time to undertake any kind of home remodeling project. But Tamika Catchings is going to need something she doesn't currently have.

"I don't have a mantle," she said. "Hopefully, I'll get one in a couple of years."

Chances are, she's going to need one sooner than that, if she intends to properly display the trophies that could be coming her way.

A leading candidate for both the WNBA Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year, Catchings is also a strong possibility for Defensive Player of the Year.

"I'm telling you, you just can't deny all the things she brings to the table," said Fever coach Nell Fortner. "You can't compare her to anyone. Who can you compare her to? I mean, really. She has a style, to me, all her own."

Carrying the team to its first WNBA playoff berth in her rookie season - the Fever opens first-round play in Conseco Fieldhouse against New York on Friday at 6 p.m. - Catchings produced one of the most thoroughly prolific individual seasons in league history, ranking in the top 10 in almost every major statistical category.

She was first in steals (2.94); second in scoring (18.6), 3-point field goals made (76) and minutes (36.5); third in double-doubles (12) and free-throws made (150); fourth in rebounds (8.6); tied for sixth in blocked shots (1.34); and 10th in assists (3.7). She established franchise records in all of those categories except assists.

Her impact went beyond even those remarkable statistics. She was the player diving into the stands to save a long rebound, hitting the floor to chase a loose ball, giving up her body to take the charge and generally playing with a relentless abandon that was even more remarkable, considering she was coming off a major knee injury that forced her to sit out the 2001 season.

The only physical problem she encountered was a broken nose, the result of an elbow from Miami's Ruth Riley in July, that forced her to wear a mask through the end of the regular season.

"Thank God that's the worst thing that happened," Catchings said. "Even with that, being able to still play and not sitting out any games was the best part of it."

Catchings' chief competition for Rookie of the Year is Seattle's Sue Bird, whose season, though strong, simply doesn't measure up to Catchings. The MVP race promises to be a duel between Catchings and two dominant veterans, Houston's Sheryl Swoopes and Los Angeles' Lisa Leslie. Both Swoopes and Leslie played for more dominant teams, but neither was as productive across the board as Catchings.

Fortner

"You're looking at players who are on established team with players who are established in the league," said Fortner of Catchings' MVP competition. "She's come onto this team, an expansion team and meant a tremendous amount to it. I don't think I can even put it into words. You look at the stats and that tells a big story. The thing is, when you come to see her in person, that's totally different. You can read about her in the newspaper, you can watch highlights on TV, but when you see her play in person it's a totally different feeling you come away with because of how she plays the game.

"It's her relentless style of play, the absolute hunger she has to get that basketball on both ends of the floor. You can't teach it. She comes with it. It doesn't matter whether she scores or not. She wants to win and she's going to do everything she can to help her team win, and that's where her relentlessness is just tremendous."

Defensive Player of the Year is another possibility because of Catchings' productivity in rebounding, steals and blocked shots. In each of the WNBA's previous five seasons, the league leader in steals won the defensive player honor. Catchings not only led the league, her average was the third-highest ever.

Catchings has not gotten caught up in the awards talk; her standard response is to just shrug and say it'd be nice to win MVP but she'd really rather win games.

"It feels good (to be considered) but I'm a team player and my main focus is getting us to the playoffs," she said after the Fever beat Miami at home on Sunday night, before the postseason berth was clinched. "I want to be the MVP, but I'll be a lot happier if we get to the playoffs and I'm not (the MVP)."

Fortner could allow herself to gloat, considering her role in the draft-day decision in 2001 to use the No. 3 pick on Catchings, knowing the short-term ramifications of the knee injury she suffered midway through her senior season at Tennessee. But the coach is a positive-energy person who allows little time for such thoughts.

"I get asked about that, but I never think about it because I knew what I was getting," she said. "People can say what they want to say. I'd known the kid for seven years, so I knew what was coming and she was well worth the wait."

Though she has been compared to NBA legend Larry Bird because of the total package of skills she brings to the court, Catchings said she used Miami center Alonzo Mourning as a role model growing up - not because of his moves, but because of his work ethic.

"I wanted to be like Zo," she said. "Alonzo Mourning was always the player I enjoyed watching because he works hard. That's how I am. I love to work hard. I might not make the best decisions all the time but I love to play the game and I love to work hard."

The most noticeable improvement in Catchings' game during the season, in fact, has been her decision-making. Not only have her Fever teammates learned how to play around her, she has learned to play within them.

Catchings

"I'm getting mentally smarter on offense and defense," she said. "At the beginning of the season, I made a lot of bad decisions on defense. I still came up with steals but a lot of times my player was the one who scored. Now, I'm able to get into the flow, defensively. Offensively, we've seen just about everything thrown at us. We just go out, focus on ourselves, moving the ball around and hitting the open shots."

Fortner concurred.

"She's making really good decisions - when to pass it inside, when to drive," Fortner said. "Now, I'll tell you this: I don't mind, at times, what she does with the ball because the ball in her hands going to the hole is sometimes our best offense - her creating and making things happen.

"She draws so much attention she can kick to somebody for a wide-open shot or hit somebody wide open under the basket. She wants everybody involved. She doesn't want to have to do it all. She cares about everybody, and she knows it's important they're involved, so I give her a lot of credit for making better decisions."

It is exceedingly rare - almost to the point of uniqueness - when talent, dedication and passion converge in the form of one player, but that's just what Catchings represents. When the best player works the hardest and cares the most, there is nothing beyond her grasp.