Fever guard Sophie Cunningham officially tore her MCL after Sun guard Bria Hartley collided with her knee during Indiana's win on Sunday. Cunningham will have to undergo surgery and miss the remainder of the 2025 season.

Cunningham clarified Tuesday on her podcast, Show Me Something, that she truly does not think Hartley intentionally injured her knee.

“I know Bria and I’m actually really good friends with Bria," Cunningham said. "... I think there was no ill intent. It was a basketball play, I was just in the wrong spot at the wrong time, she fell. There was no way would she would go in there and intentionally try to hurt me. I have nothing but love for Bria. ... There are some girls that I think might, but she wouldn’t do that."

Following the play, Cunningham's mom, Paula, was among those who called out Hartley for her daughter's injury. Paula posted in a since-deleted tweet, "Harley is a disgruntled player having trouble everywhere she goes; she's plain mean and plays out of control."

"I even told my mom because she tweeted something. I was like, 'No Mom, I get it. I promise, Bria and I are super cool and she would never try to hurt me.' There are some girls that I think might, but she wouldn’t do that," Cunningham said. " ... I hope people stop giving Bria some heat."

Cunningham additionally clarified that she did not view Hartley's smile as taking pleasure in her injury, but simply wincing as Cunningham suffered the injury. Hartley has been ejected for getting too physical in a game before, but Cunningham's MCL tear was simply a case of unfortunate timing.

Despite the injury, Cunningham is overall in good spirits and thankful for where she's at in her career with the Fever. Though she is sidelined for the rest of this season, she is expected to be back in time for the start of the 2026 season.

More WNBA on Sports Illustrated


This article was originally published on www.si.com as Sophie Cunningham Defends Bria Hartley, Sun Guard That Injured Her Knee.

Test hyperlink for boilerplate