Aug 7, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham (8) reacts against the Phoenix Mercury during an WNBA game at PHX Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Injury Expert Assesses Sophie Cunningham Knee Injury Possibilities

Originally posted on Indiana Fever on SI | By Grant Young | Last updated Aug 18, 2025 11:23 AM ET

Indiana Fever standout Sophie Cunningham suffered a right knee injury during the team's August 17 contest against the Connecticut Sun.

Cunningham was defending Sun player Bria Hartley when Hartley fell down after making a pass in the first half. She was falling down as she delivered the ball and rolled up on the outside of Cunningham's knee as she was falling. Cunningham immediately clutched her knee, began hobbling around for a few moments, and then ultimately fell to the ground on the baseline, clearly in a lot of pain.

After being attended to by members of the Fever staff for a few minutes, Cunningham ultimately went to the locker room and didn't return to the game.

Fever head coach Stephanie White spoke with the media postgame and noted that there currently isn't any update on what actually happened to Cunningham's knee. She did, however, say that Cunningham would be receiving an MRI on Monday, which should provide details on what happened.

Sports Injury Expert Speaks on Sophie Cunningham Knee Injury

Sports injury MD Brian Sutterer analyzes injuries that athletes suffer on his YouTube channel. And on August 17, he did a video on Sophie Cunningham's injury.

After detailing what's actually happening to Cunningham's knee when Hartley falls on her, Sutterer noted that this play could potentially cause an ACL tear. However, given various factors about how Cunningham injured her knee (such as angle and impact), Sutterer doesn't seem to think Cunningham suffered a torn ACL.

From there, Sutterer spoke about the potential of Cunningham suffering an MCL injury (potentially a tear), which he seemed to think was more likely than an ACL injury. This is because the MCL sits on the inside of the knee, which is where the stress and stretch from Hartley falling onto the outside of her knee would have come from.

A third option Sutterer spoke of was a potential kneecap dislocation, which he said is, "Definitely something we have to keep in mind here."

In summary, Sutterer said that he thinks the most likely outcomes is a potential injury to the MCL ligament or perhaps a kneecap dislocation.

Sutterer did note that he's relatively limited given the angles of the injury and that just because this is his opinion, it doesn't guarantee that Cunningham did suffer one of the injuries he's suggesting are most likely.

But in his expert opinion, Sutterer seems to believe that Cunningham could have either hurt her MCL or her kneecap on this play, both of which could keep her sidelined for the rest of the season.

This article first appeared on Indiana Fever on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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