Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham addressed a hard foul and social media post by Chicago Sky guard DiJonai Carrington following Saturday’s WNBA game.
Late in the first quarter at the United Center, Cunningham drove for a fast break layup. Carrington chased her down and made contact with Cunningham’s head and neck area using her arm. Cunningham fell to the floor as the shot went in. She rose quickly and moved toward Carrington. Teammates, including Makayla Timpson, held Cunningham back as the players exchanged words.
Officials reviewed the play. They upgraded the call to a Flagrant 2 foul, citing windup, impact, follow through, and contact on a player in a vulnerable position. The Flagrant 2 resulted in Carrington’s ejection. Carrington had scored eight points off the bench before the incident.
Shortly after leaving the court, Carrington posted the words “WHITE PRIVILEGE” on Threads and tagged the Indiana Fever.
Cunningham spoke to reporters after the Fever’s 90-86 victory. She described the foul as unnecessary. “I’ve never really spoken to her and have no beef with her, but I guess she has some pent-up stuff,” Cunningham said. “So get your stuff off. That’s fine. I can take it.” She added that she believed the contact was intentional and that Carrington sought attention because of the national spotlight on the Fever.
On Carrington’s post, Cunningham said, “I think the league is taking care of that. This has nothing to do with race. Last year, I did the same thing and I got kicked out. And I deserved to be kicked out. There’s no reason even to play that card.”
Officials did not penalize Cunningham for her reaction on the floor. Crew chief Maj Forsberg stated the reaction was acceptable given the severity of the contact.
Fever coach Stephanie White called the play a hard foul. Sky coach Tyler Marsh said he needed to review the social media post before commenting further.
The game continued without further major incidents involving the two players. Caitlin Clark of the Fever received a technical foul later in the contest for contact with a referee.
Carrington declined comment after the game. The WNBA has not yet announced any additional disciplinary action.
