Sophie Cunningham made her debut with the Indiana Fever Thursday night against the Atlanta Dream after injuring her ankle during a preseason match earlier this month.
Sophie Cunningham's Fever debut performance grade: A
Cunningham entered the game with three minutes left in the first quarter. She got off to a bit of a slow start but helped the team by hitting their second three with 2 seconds left in the first quarter. Cunningham was still in the game in the second quarter when the Fever launched a 7-point run to take the lead (thanks to a shot by Kelsey Mitchell, which brought the score up to 20-18).
Throughout the first half Cunningham was an energetic presence for the Fever. She might not have hit many major buckets, but she skillfully moved the ball to where it needed to be, allowing her teammates (especially Mitchell) to get the shots the team needed. By the half the Fever was up by 3.
Cunningham was not on the floor when the teams came back after the half, but was on the court just over the 7 minute mark after both Clark and Aliyah Boston exited the game with four fouls each. Cunningham and Hull exchanged a series of passes throughout the third, but nothing hit until Cunningham landed a three with three and a half minutes to go. She returned to the bench soon after.
She was back in the game in the fourth and was called for an illegal screen that was unsuccessfully challenged by Coach Stephanie White. Cunningham was fouled by Rhyne Howard with 22 seconds left in the game, a moment that was followed by a foul against Mitchell. She had a major block with 11 seconds left on the game clock and made it almost entirely down the floor before she was fouled. Cunningham hit one free throw, bringing the score to 81-76 for the Fever.
Ultimately, Cunningham ended the game with 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists in 19 minutes, a more than solid performance that shows she excels at exactly what the Fever needs her to do: a little bit of everything, and that made all the difference.
Sophie Cunningham joined the Fever in February
Cunningham joined the Fever as part of the massive four-team trade in February. She previously played six season with the Phoenix Mercury, where she averaged 10 points per game.
Cunningham made her feelings about Caitlin Clark very clear long before she was moved to the team. Cunningham was seen sitting court side when Phoenix hosted last year's All-Star game, cheering on Clark who was a participant in the game. She also appeared in an interview onThe Travis Hearn Podcasti n October 2024, where she was asked about Clark's impact on women's basketball and how she thinks Clark has handled the pressure in her rookie season.
"She's handling the pressure very well. She has done a lot of great things for women's basketball and I'm a fan. I would love to play with her one day, for real," Cunningham said.