WNBA Fans Have 2-Word Nickname For Sophie Cunningham
Sophie Cunningham, the Indiana Fever guard, has been trending on social media for a couple of weeks now.
It started last month, during a game between the Fever and the Connecticut Sun. The regular season game featured a skirmish between Caitlin Clark and multiple members of the Sun. Clark was hit in the eye by Sun guard Jacy Sheldon and then decked to the ground by another player. Later in the game, Cunningham retaliated, bringing Sheldon to the ground in a hard foul. She was ejected from the game.
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Cunningham has since become somewhat of a lightning rod among WNBA fans. Fans of Clark and the Fever love her, while opposing teams seem to hate her. Cunningham didn't help herself with comments on the WNBA's expansion cities - Detroit, Cleveland and Philadelphia - on Tuesday.
"You want to listen to your players, too," Cunningham said. "Where do they want to play? Where are they going to get excited to play and draw fans? I do think that Miami would have been a great [location]. Nashville is an amazing city. Kansas City, amazing opportunity.
"I'm not so sure what the thought process is there, but at the end of the day, you want to make sure that you're not expanding our league too fast. I think that that's also another thing. It's kind of a hard decision-making situation. But man, I don't know how excited people are to be going to Detroit or [Cleveland]."
WNBA fans, meanwhile, have come up with a two-word nickname for Cunningham.
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Cunningham, who is rumored to lean right politically, has been nicknamed "MAGA Barbie."
"Mind you maga barbie is saying this from indiana," one fan wrote in response to her comments.
"These cities are dragging MAGA Barbie," one fan added.
"The thought of MAGA barbie getting booed while playing in Detroit if she's still even in the league by then," one fan added.
PHOENIX, AZ - AUGUST 26: Sophie Cunningham #9 of the Phoenix Mercury looks on during the game against the New York Liberty on August 26, 2024 at Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Kate Frese/NBAE via Getty Images)Cunningham, 28, doesn't seem to mind the criticism. She's blown up on social media in recent weeks, with more than one million followers on Instagram.
As Howard Stern would say, it doesn't matter if the people listening to you are listening because they love you or they hate you. The fact that they care is all that matters.
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That seems to be the case with Cunningham.
WNBA Fans Have 2-Word Nickname For Sophie Cunningham first appeared on The Spun on Jul 2, 2025
This story was originally reported by The Spun on Jul 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
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