No reason even to play that card

During Saturday’s game at the United Center in Chicago, Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham was fouled hard by Chicago Sky guard DiJonai Carrington.

Following a review, Carrington’s foul was upgraded to a flagrant 2, leading to her ejection. Shortly after her departure, the Sky guard posted on Threads:

“WHITE PRIVILEGE @indianafever.”

ESPN’s Kareem Copeland reported Cunningham’s reaction to Carrington’s social media post on Saturday. Cunningham stated that Carrington’s ejection should not be attributed to race:

“I think the league is taking care of that. This has nothing to do with race. Last year, I did the same thing, and I got kicked out. And I deserved to be kicked out. There’s no reason even to play that card.”

The incident took place late in the first quarter when Cunningham was attempting a fast-break layup. Carrington sprinted back on defense, and as she challenged the shot, her left arm hit Cunningham’s face and neck.

Although Cunningham scored, she fell hard to the floor and immediately confronted Carrington before others intervened.

Critics, including OutKick’s Bobby Burack and NFL linebacker Emmanuel Acho, also condemned Carrington’s “white privilege” remark, asserting in separate tweets that race was not a factor in the physical play.

Sophie Cunningham calls DiJonai Carrington’s hard foul ‘unnecessary’

According to ESPN’s Kareem Copeland on Saturday, Sophie Cunningham described DiJonai Carrington’s flagrant 2 foul against her as unwarranted. The Indiana Fever star also suggested Carrington “did it because she wants attention.”

“Clearly, I think it was like unnecessary,” Cunningham said. “I’ve never really spoken to her and have no beef with her, but I guess she has some pent-up stuff. So get your s**t off. That’s fine. I can take it. … She has no reason to be doing any of that. So, good way to get her kicked out.”

“I don’t even know her. … But I do think when people play the Fever, we’re nationally televised, there’s a lot of eyes on us and people just want attention. And that’s her just trying to get attention.”

Some fans on social media connected Carrington’s hard foul to Sophie Cunningham’s controversial comments about transgender athletes. Cunningham sparked a debate about trans athletes with her remarks in a July 21 ESPN article, where she supported barring transgender athletes from girls’ and women’s sports.