Sophie Cunningham's Stance on 'Goofy' Fever Roster Chemistry Speaks Volumes
As important as it is to cultivate chemistry on the court, there's a case to be made that a WNBA roster meshing off the court is perhaps even more valuable.
What's not debatable is that the way a team gets along in the locker room has an impact on how they perform during games. And the Indiana Fever's 2025 team was a great example of this. Despite the staggering amount of injuries they dealt with (particularly to star guard Caitlin Clark and Sophie Cunningham), the Fever advanced to within one game of making the WNBA Finals.
And their elite team chemistry helped them reach this point. Watching the bench during their games made it clear how much the roster enjoyed each other's company and genuinely wanted everyone to succeed, both individually and as a team. That mindset is easier said than done in the professional game, and Indiana's franchise deserves a ton of credit for creating that culture.
Sophie Cunningham's Comments About Fever Chemistry Should Spark Optimism
Because the Fever's 2025 team chemistry was so positive, there has been interest on how the roster was faring in this regard during the 2026 preseason. And Sophie Cunningham spoke to this when addressing the media on May 4.
When Cunningham was asked about how she's seeing an identity being developed by the Fever throughout this preseason, she said, "You know, it's fun. I think we have a really goofy team. We all are bonding, and it has been super fun. We all get along, which is nice," per a YouTube video from IndyStarTV.
"But it's hard, because you still have so many people on your roster. You're still trying to find your identity of people who are practicing, who are going to be playing. And you have some people who are injured, who are going to be big pieces to our team. And so, I think for me, it's just like creating a standard of, 'You know, this is what we're going to be about on defense, this is what we're going to be about on offense.' And if you don't need it, then you're going to have to have tough conversations," Cunningham continued.
"But that's what makes people great, is they're willing to have those conversations. And so it has moved pretty quickly, but I think we're all meshing a lot better than we all thought," she concluded.
Sophie Cunningham on how the Fever’s “goofy” roster is meshing through this point in the preseason
— Grant Young (@GrvntYoung) May 4, 2026
🎥: IndyStarTV: Fever pic.twitter.com/HONQbSzqQe
This sentiment from Cunningham speaks volumes because her calling the roster "goofy" and asserting they're already meshing suggests they're on track to recapturing that locker room feeling from a year ago.
Perhaps this should have been expected, given that most of the team's core pieces from last year are back. But it's still good for fans to hear.
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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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