Sophie Cunningham Defends Stephanie White Through DiJonai Carrington Compliment

Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham gave DiJonai Carrington credit on Tuesday night while also defending Stephanie White.

Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham looks on. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The biggest on-court story in basketball over the past few days stemmed from when Chicago sky guard DiJonai Carrington whacked Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham on the head while Cunningham was going for a layup during Saturday's game.

Cunningham took offense to the hard foul, which led to an exchange between her and Carrington. DiJonai was ultimately ejected from the game for the foul, then went to the locker room and wrote, "WHITE PRIVILEGE @indianafever" in a social media post.

After the game, Fever head coach Stephanie White said, "Look, it was a hard foul.I don't think DiJonai intentionally came out to get her across the neck like she did. But it did happen, and I thought it was the right call...I also don't think that she intentionally went for the neck."

Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham (8) fights with Chicago Sky guard DiJonai Carrington | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

White received a ton of criticism for these comments from Fever fans, as these fans felt like she wasn't coming to her own player's defense enough. And White clearly saw the backlash against her, which she addressed with a scathing rant before Tuesday's game against the New York Liberty.

Cunningham had her coach's back—while also giving Carrington her flowers—when speaking to the media after Tuesday's game.

"Our locker room in there, it's tight, and we have each other's backs. Coach loves us. She didn't see the [instant replay] clip. At the end of the day, she didn't see the clip. And you know what, DiJonai? She is a hell of a player; she's a great defender," Cunningham said, per a Fever YouTube video.

"[White] coached her for, I don't know how many years up in Connecticut. So, give [White] her flowers, and she didn't see it. And that's okay. Me and Steph are great. Steph is great with all of us. And so, it's really the outside noise that's trying to distract us, but we're good," Cunningham added.

Sophie Cunningham is Correct About DiJonai Carrington

Fans are within their rights to feel any type of way about Carrington as a person, and are fair to have an opinion about her foul on Cunningham being "egregious", as Stephanie White said. But there's no question that Carrington is an elite defender.

Plus, Carrington employs the same gritty, unapologetic playing style that has endeared Cunningham to Fever fans. She doesn't take disrespect, defends her teammates, and isn't afraid to get into scuffles on behalf of her roster.

Cunningham and Carrington are similar in that way. And Sophie acknowledging this and complimenting Carrington is a solid step toward putting this whole debacle in the rearview mirror.