Fever Star Sophie Cunningham Becomes Point of Inspiration
By now everyone has seen the viral pointing meme of Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham. Cunningham originally directed the gesture toward former teammate DeWanna Bonner during a heated exchange in a game between the two teams. However, since then, the pointing pose has taken on a life of its own.
It has clearly reached the next generation as well. Cunningham held a youth camp in Indiana with several hundred girls and boys in attendance. Video taken by Scott Agness from the event shows that the campers were eager to do the pointing gesture themselves in photos with Cunningham.
Every camper gets a photo with Cunningham. And, as you’d expect, they all want to do the signature point pic.twitter.com/PICkbLpY7B
— Scott Agness (@ScottAgness) July 19, 2026
This mirrors what has been seen at recent Fever games since the whole thing exploded.
Cunningham made it clear that this came at the behest of the kids in an interview with WISHNews8 from the camp.
"They're the ones requesting that. They're like, 'hey can you point?' And I'm like, hey, whatever you guys want. I walked in and instead of cheers and stuff, everyone pointed...yeah, I didn't mean for that meme to even become a meme, and then it kind of just went all over the world. It's been kind of funny," Cunningham said.
Sophie Cunningham reacts to my viral video of her pointing pose with young fans before Friday's game.
— Angela Moryan (@AngelaMoryanTV) July 19, 2026
"They're the ones that requested that!"
She said everyone greeted her by pointing when she walked in to her kids camp today in Carmel. 🤣@WISHNews8 | @wrtv | #IndianaFever pic.twitter.com/s0K156HAJl
The Fever star emphasized how she wants to ensure she instills confidence in and encourages the young girls and boys who showed up to participate.
Point of Controversy?
After the pointing photos from the camp blew up, sports business reporter Darren Rovell claimed that the WNBAPA is not allowing the image to be licensed.
"The WNBA Players Association is currently prohibiting licensees from using the Sophie point, saying that it is “derogatory," he wrote.
Some context: The WNBPA has a blanket policy to not monetize confrontation-coded moments between its members. Players, however, are free to create and/or license their own NIL with any brand. https://t.co/8602U1tlt9
— Seerat Sohi (@seeratsohi) July 20, 2026
The WNBAPA later clarified its policy to Front Office Sports.
For licensed apparel, we generally do not feature or look to monetize player conduct from a confrontation between our members,” a spokesperson said.
However, this does not prevent Cunningham from monetizing it herself, including with partner brands of the union. But any brand wanting to use WNBA or team logos would need approval from the league.
That explanation seems sound, as long as it is applied across the board and Cunningham's pointing wasn't singled out.
Regardless, the Fever star likely values the inspiration she has become more than any monetary benefit that could come along with the moment.
Cunningham has also been quite valuable to the Fever as a player this season. She ranks fifth in the WNBA in 3-point percentage (43.7%) and is averaging 9.4 points off the bench. That's to go with the intangibles that have made her a great teammate, and now a viral sensation—and inspiration.
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Robin Lundberg is a media veteran and hoops head who has spent the bulk of his career with iconic brands like Sports Illustrated and ESPN. His insights have also been featured on platforms such as Fox and CNN and he can currently be heard hosting shows for Sirius XM and on his popular YouTube channel. And now he brings his basketball expertise to Women's Fastbreak On SI and Indiana Fever On SI!
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