Sophie Cunningham has aimed another sharp dig at the Phoenix Mercury, claiming even people inside her former organization don’t like the team’s current roster.
The Indiana Fever guard made the remark on her Show Me Something podcast after another tense meeting between the Fever and Mercury, continuing a run of public comments that has made her one of the loudest voices around Caitlin Clark’s treatment and Indiana’s rivalry with Phoenix.
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Cunningham spent the first six seasons of her WNBA career with the Mercury before joining the Fever, so her comments carried extra weight because of her long history in Phoenix.
“You know what’s funny, though? I know people in their organization that are like, nobody likes their team this year,” Cunningham said.
Cunningham calls Mercury unfriendly
Cunningham went further by claiming that criticism of Phoenix isn’t only coming from opponents.
“They say that they’re the unfriendliest group,” Cunningham said. “So we’re not the only ones who feel that way. Internal people feel that way, too.”
The comments came after a bruising spell between the teams, including the game in which Alyssa Thomas’ fist made contact with Clark’s throat during a drive to the basket.
The WNBA later upgraded that play to a Flagrant 2 and suspended Thomas for one game, while Cunningham has repeatedly argued that Clark is being targeted and not protected enough by officials.
Phoenix rivalry gets more personal
The Fever-Mercury tension has been building all season, and Cunningham’s latest remarks make it feel increasingly personal.
She has already defended Clark, mocked Phoenix during podcast discussions and explained her viral pointing exchange with DeWanna Bonner, another moment that fed into the rivalry.
There’s no real evidence that the entire Mercury organization dislikes its own team, and Cunningham didn’t name the people she claimed to have spoken to.
Still, her comments will land hard because she knows Phoenix from the inside. If the Fever and Mercury meet again with playoff stakes attached, this quote will be waiting for both locker rooms.