Sophie Cunningham Alleges WNBA Players 'Targeting' Caitlin Clark, Questions League Marketing Strategy

Indiana Fever standout Sophie Cunningham recently made pointed remarks regarding the treatment of teammate Caitlin Clark by rival players and game officials. Her comments followed a notable incident where Phoenix Mercury star Alyssa Thomas made contact with Clark's throat during a game, an action that went uncalled by referees.

Cunningham also addressed her widely shared on-court interaction with Mercury veteran DeWanna Bonner, describing Bonner as "losing her s---" due due to the intensity of Cunningham's now-famous pointing gesture.

Allegations of Targeting and Official Inaction

Cunningham began by asserting that other players are deliberately "targeting" Clark on the court.

"You see the videos of literally kneeing and cheapshotting [Clark] in the throat... they're definitely targeting her and the league and the refs do nothing to protect her," Cunningham stated on her podcast.

She further explained that she and her Fever teammates were unaware of Thomas's action against Clark as it happened during the game.

"During real time last night, I did not see that happen," Cunningham explained. "None of our team saw it happen because I promise you if we would have seen that happen, we would have had her back."

Cunningham added that such incidents are not uncommon for Clark.

"Unfortunately, this type of [expletive] happens every single game to her and the league and the refs do absolutely nothing about it," Cunningham emphasized.

Viral On-Court Moment and Technical Foul

Beyond the discussion of Clark's treatment, Cunningham herself gained widespread attention for a separate moment during the Fever-Mercury game. A clip of her repeatedly pointing during an exchange with officials and Bonner quickly became a popular WNBA meme.

On her podcast, Cunningham lightheartedly described her technical foul as "the weakest thing I’ve ever seen in my life," clarifying that she "didn’t say a word" and was "all I was doing was literally pointing."

"I couldn't help myself. I could not. She was losing her s--- and all I was doing was literally pointing," Cunningham recounted.

Critique of League Marketing Strategy

Cunningham also openly criticized the league's promotional efforts, specifically calling out the WNBA for omitting Clark from a commemorative league graphic, while Cunningham herself was included.

"It is a joke. It is a joke," Cunningham declared. "And this is why Kathy and the WNBA is getting lit up on social media because you are leaving out a generational [player], the best player to ever go through WNBA on this roster."

She further suggested that the league should prioritize marketing Clark and other key Fever players more effectively.

"If they were smart they would market this [expletive] out of some of us. They don't," Cunningham noted. "That should be Caitlin. That should be Kelsey Mitchell. That should be Aaliyah Boston. Like, why are we putting random players on there? I'm one of them... What we do makes no sense... Even the people they put on the commercials, like they could, if they're really trying to make money, they are going to put people out there that first of all people want to see, that people are going to bring attention to, and they just don't. They just don't. I don't know what they think when all that happens."