Indiana Fever On SI

Sophie Cunningham Ruled Out for Fever WNBA Season Opener vs Sky

Indiana Fever standout Sophie Cunningham will be missing her team's WNBA regular season opener.
Grant Young|
Apr 30, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham poses for a photo Wednesday, April 30, 2025, during the Indiana Fever media day at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Mandatory Credit: Grace Smith-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images
Apr 30, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham poses for a photo Wednesday, April 30, 2025, during the Indiana Fever media day at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Mandatory Credit: Grace Smith-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images | Grace Smith-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

During the Indiana Fever's May 10 WNBA preseason game against the Atlanta Dream, Fever guard Sophie Cunningham rolled her ankle on Dream player Rhyne Howard's foot while going up for a rebound.

She left the game in the third quarter and did not return. While it became clear in the following days that Cunningham avoided a serious injury, her status for the Fever's regular season opener against the Chicago Sky on May 17 was clearly up in the air.

Cunningham wasn't practicing earlier in the week, and whenever head coach Stephanie White was asked about an update, she didn't give any direct details and instead said they would take things day by day.

However, White mentioned multiple times that they were more focused on ensuring Cunningham was healthy for the entire season rather than rushing her to get back for Game No. 1.

In hindsight, perhaps this was White subtly giving the media an answer on whether Cunningham would play on Saturday, as the Fever's social media account made an X post on Friday afternoon that read, "Status Report for tomorrow's game against the Sky:

"Sophie Cunningham - OUT (right ankle)".

It will be interesting to see how the Fever look on the court without Cunningham, as she's a clear spark plug on both ends of the floor for them.

Regardless, this decision to sit her out tomorrow makes sense, if only to help make sure Cunningham is good to go later on in the year, when it matters most.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the Indiana Fever and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.

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