Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham sparked tension by insulting Phoenix Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner during a podcast appearance ahead of their final regular-season game in Arizona on Thursday, July 9, 2026.
According to social media footage from Dirty Mo Media, Cunningham referred to Bonner as "Miss Priss" prior to the matchup.
The comment intensifies an existing rivalry between the two teams.
The rivalry previously flared when Cunningham directed a finger-pointing gesture at Bonner during an on-court altercation last month.
That incident quickly became a viral cultural moment, with public figures such as John Cena, Tom Brady, and the White House sharing the image online.
Cunningham addressed her mindset regarding her viral fame during an appearance on James Corden's Fox Sports World Cup talk show.
"A little sassy sometimes," she said.
She explained to Corden and his panel that the gesture resulted from her mastering how to get inside the minds of her opponents, describing it as a strategic element within the sport.
The player later expanded on her brand growth during the July 9 episode of the Sons and Daughters podcast.
"I'm just embracing it and having fun. But I'm also someone who is not ignorant.
I know, if you use this platform, you can, once the ball stops bouncing, you're setting yourself for success," Cunningham said.
Cunningham highlighted the financial realities for female athletes, noting that current compensation structures necessitate long-term brand building for life after basketball.
"Players need to start doing that because we don't make enough money.
Even now, after the CBA, we don't make enough money to retire and not do anything once we're done," she said.
The guard also recalled a previous June 17 incident involving Connecticut guard Jacy Sheldon, which initially boosted her social media following by hundreds of thousands of followers across TikTok and Instagram.
"I will say like, sometimes my sassy means the best of me, and it worked out in my favor last year and companies, you know?
I took it, and I ran with it.
I have a great agency… then this year, I had no idea that this thing was going to take off because when I'm in it, I'm not thinking about that.
I'm just like being me, doing whatever dumb stuff that I do. It's working out," Cunningham said.
According to data provided by Social Blade, Cunningham's overall brand value experienced historic growth following these incidents, bringing her Instagram following to 1.5 million users.
"We work with some pretty big athletes that have gone viral for some pretty big things, but this has been something that I haven't seen before, this type of growth in this short amount of time… was very new territory," said Addison Abdo, senior director of management company STN.
The July 9 game marks the final regular-season meeting between the Indiana Fever and the Phoenix Mercury for the 2026 season.
