Sophie Cunningham, now wearing the Indiana Fever jersey, found herself in a quiet Manhattan bar corner during March Madness. While The Stumble Inn buzzed with excitement, Cunningham had something to say—loud and clear—for those trying to dim Caitlin Clark's shine.
“If you're trying to be jealous or knock her down, then you're not in it for the right reason,” she told the Daily Mail. “The impact that she's had – not only on women's basketball, but on female athletes as a whole – it's like a Michael Jordan effect.”
“Heck Yeah” to Indiana: Cunningham Embraces the Fever
A six-year WNBA veteran, Cunningham was lounging by the pool when she learned she’d been traded to the Indiana Fever, one of the most talked-about teams in basketball. “Heck yeah,” she remembered thinking. “We're about to go win a championship.”
Having played with and against legends of the game, Cunningham admits Caitlin Clark’s influence is unmatched.
Clark's Meteoric Rise—and the Backlash
As the Fever’s No. 1 overall pick in 2024, Clark became a generational figure, guiding the WNBA to a record-breaking year. Yet, her rise didn’t come without resistance.
From Joe Biden commenting on her paycheck to being knocked to the floor by Chennedy Carter, Clark has been at the center of controversies around race, gender, and money. Cunningham believes some of the backlash stems from envy.
“Maybe there is some beef there,” she said. “But I think now they're really realizing everything she's bringing to the table... you're not going to see a lot more Caitlin Clarks.”
Cunningham’s Support Role: “I’ll Be the Sabrina Carpenter”
Cunningham likened her position beside Clark to Sabrina Carpenter opening for Taylor Swift—an analogy she laughed about, but one that underscores her message.
“Taylor Swift, Caitlin Clark, they're going to do their thing,” she said. “But I just said I'm going to be the Sabrina Carpenter in the corner, being her biggest supporter, doing whatever the team needs... she does a great job of making everyone else around her better. (But) in order to win, it really does take everybody.”
She added, “We're not taking away from anything that she's done. We want to help her. We want to all win.”
Veteran Guidance and Off-Court Glam
Cunningham, who spent time with Diana Taurasi at the Phoenix Mercury, plans to be a mentor for Clark.
“I've learned how to become a pro. I've learned what she does in order to be great,” she said. “Caitlin is going to (get) there. But when you don't have that experience, sometimes you need someone to kind of lean on.”
Off the court, the Missouri native is also a fashion-forward NBA analyst and model with 274K Instagram followers. “I like to be girly. I like fashion. I think you can do both,” she said.
Hope for a Better WNBA Future
Despite the WNBA's growth, Cunningham pointed out disparities that remain.
“Some of our teams are still (practicing) at YMCAs, sharing the court with normal people. There's no elite-level athletes doing that in any other leagues.”
However, change is on the horizon. Indiana is building a $78 million training center, set to open in 2027.