Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham said Friday that she “didn’t think twice” about the Trump administration using her recent technical foul, which was assessed for pointing at an opposing player, as part of a viral meme.
The Trump administration shared its version of Cunningham’s meme in a video posted Tuesday evening from the White House’s official X account. The video featured Cunningham and President Donald Trump, and the accompanying caption included one shushing emoji and one pointing emoji.
“I think everyone around the world is posting it,” Cunningham told reporters Friday at practice when asked for her thoughts on the Trump administration’s video. “Every company has done it. They’re just the one to also get on board, and so I didn’t really think twice about it. I think they’re just another group who is posting about it.”
The 11-second video starts with a clip from Cunningham’s “Show Me Something” podcast that shows Cunningham explaining a recent technical foul she received for pointing at Phoenix Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner. The video then cuts from Cunningham, who reenacted the incident by pointing into her podcast’s camera, to Trump pointing into a camera and signaling a thumbs-up while nodding.
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 30, 2026
Trump is serving his second, nonconsecutive term as President of the U.S. He has not hosted a WNBA championship-winning team at the White House during either of his terms, a tradition for past presidents.
Cunningham was one of five players, including Bonner, to receive a technical foul during the fourth quarter of the Fever’s 86-77 win over the Mercury on June 22. The now-viral dustup started after Fever star Caitlin Clark, who was also whistled for a technical foul, fouled Bonner. Both players took exception to the other’s physicality and exchanged words before being separated by teammates and officials.
As the referees tried to diffuse the situation, the tension was reignited, in part, when Bonner and Cunningham came face to face and began pointing at each other. Cunningham and Bonner were teammates with the Fever last season and played together in 2019 during Cunningham’s rookie season with the Mercury.
“I was literally talking to the refs. … I was like, ‘Now, Caitlin got (a technical foul), but why didn’t (Bonner) get one?’ I was just pointing,” Cunningham said on her podcast. “And she’s like, ‘Don’t you point at me!’ And I was like, ‘Aw, (you) shouldn’t have said that.’ And I didn’t say a word.”
Instead of chirping back at Bonner, Cunningham repeatedly pointed to antagonize her. The clip of Cunningham’s self-proclaimed “dumb” antics has since gone viral with several athletes, celebrities and even sports teams in other leagues reposting it with different captions.
“(It’s) so goofy,” Cunningham said Friday. “It’s getting worldwide views now, so it’s just been kind of fun to see. … I didn’t even mean for it to blow up like that.”
Cunningham was sick recently and returned to practice Friday. The 29-year-old, in her second season in Indiana, is averaging 9.6 points per game. The Fever play Sunday at the Las Vegas Aces.
“It’s not like I was on vacation. I was rotting in my bed,” Cunningham said of her time away from the team. “I feel better. Just kind of waiting for my energy (to return) and this headache to kind of go away a little bit. But I’m here, and so that’s great.”
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
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