Caitlin Clark’s New Teammate Sophie Cunningham Reveals How a Joke at All-Star Weekend ‘Backfired’ on Her

Joseph Galizia | 12/03/2025
Caitlin Clark (L) and Sophie Cunningham (R)

The sixth WNBA season for Sophie Cunninghame is about to be a whole lot different than her first five. That’s because the 28-year-old star was traded from the Phoenix Mercury to the Indiana Fever this past offseason, where she now gets to compete alongside the face of the league, Caitlin Clark.

While Cunninghame hopes her excellent shooting skills will assist the Fever in their potential championship campaign, one thing she may leave on the sidelines are her jokes. Cunninghame was recently interviewed outside the Fever’s training facility to speak about her new venture in Indiana.

When the topic of playing with Clark came up, the 3-and-D specialist recalled a funny interaction she had with the “Point Goddess” during the 2024 All Star game.

“We were just having fun. She was playing, I was having a good time on the sideline,” Cunningham began. “I told her, if you ever want to come to Phoenix let me know.”

The small joke may have been apparent to Cunningham and Clark at the time, but the basketball gods found a way to make it funnier. “That one kind of backfired on me” laughed Cunningham, who embraced the fact that she was traded by Phoenix shortly one season later.

But Cunningham holds no ill-will. She seemed genuinely excited about actually teaming up with Clark even if her joke backfired. “She has changed our game in the best possible way…I want her to go do her thing and anything she needs from me I’m gonna be here,” she said about her future with the Fever.

The relationship seems to already be building well, as Cunningham already referred to herself as the Sabrina Carpenter to Clark’s Taylor Swift.

The Fever added several pieces to help bring Clark and Indiana a ring

Along with Cunningham, the Fever added Dewonna Bonner, Natasha Howard, and Sydney Colson. Three players with WNBA Finals experience that have oddsmakers referring to the team as an early title contender.

Cunningham seems to agree. In the same interview, she expressed how dominant the squad could be if all the pieces fall into the right place.

“To be honest when you have a group that can let go of the egos and you’re really just here to win and work hard…I think that’s the best type of group,” she stated. “That’s my bread and butter right there. Outwork your opponents and have fun doing it.”

All eyes will be on Clark and the Fever when their season begins against the Chicago Sky on May 17th. Will Cunningham’s prediction of everyone leaving their egos at the door come true? We’ll just have to wait and see.

Post Edited By: Adit Pujari
Caitlin Clark DeWanna Bonner Sophie Cunningham

About the author

Joseph Galizia

Joseph is a Las Vegas based actor and circus performer. For the last seven years he's had the pleasure of covering sports for multiple outlets, including the Lifestyles section of Sports Illustrated. In that time, he's conducted over 50 interviews with athletes, filmmakers, and company founders to further cement his footprint in the journalism world. He's excited to bring that skillset to the SportsRush, where he'll be covering the NBA news cycle.

Don’t miss these