USA TODAY WNBA reporter Meaghan L. Hall criticized Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham for her recent comments regarding the Phoenix Mercury, labeling the remarks as "wildly unprofessional." Cunningham, who previously played for the Mercury for six seasons before joining the Fever, made her statements on her podcast, "Show Me Something."
Cunningham's comments came after a recent game where her teammate Caitlin Clark was fouled hard by Mercury player Alyssa Thomas. The foul, initially uncalled, was later upgraded to a Flagrant 2 by the WNBA, resulting in Thomas's suspension. The Mercury organization also reportedly poked fun at the incident on social media in a now-deleted post.
On her podcast, Cunningham stated that "no one" likes the Mercury and cited internal feedback suggesting the team is "the unfriendliest group." She added that "internal people feel that way too."
In response, Hall posted on X, formerly Twitter, "Goodness gracious. I — 1) This is wildly unprofessional. 2) How is this helping with the points at everything current discourse? 3) There is not any scenario that exists where a player should be saying this about any organization."
Cunningham's tenure with the Mercury included a lawsuit filed last year that alleged a sexual relationship between her and then-Phoenix Suns and Mercury CEO Josh Bartelstein, which Cunningham denied. The Fever and Mercury are scheduled to play again on July 9, though Clark's participation is uncertain due to a back issue.