Fever Cunningham out for season

Cunningham suffered a right knee injury in a collision with Bria Hartley during Sundays game against the Connecticut Sun.

Fever lose Cunningham to season ending knee injury

Indiana Fever announced on Tuesday that Sophie Cunningham will miss the rest of the 2025 season, including the playoffs, with a right knee injury. The injury occurred in the second quarter of the Fever’s comeback win over the Connecticut Sun on Sunday when Cunningham collided with Bria Hartley while helping on defense. Cunningham, who has been productive in Indianapolis, averaged 8.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in her first season with the Fever and had moved into the starting lineup 13 games ago as a pseudo point guard after injuries to Sydney Colson and Aari McDonald.

With nine games left, Indiana sits in sixth place, 2.5 games ahead of the ninth seed. The Fever are still without Caitlin Clark, who has missed the last 13 games with a groin injury. Indiana has shored up depth by signing Odyssey Sims on a hardship deal and adding veteran guard Shey Peddy, while continuing to lean on Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston to carry the offense. The team faces a demanding finish, including three meetings with league-leading Minnesota, as it tries to navigate a rough road without Cunningham.

The injury tests the Fever’s already thin backcourt at a crucial moment. Indiana has tried to compensate by bringing in veteran guards, but time and chemistry matter in a stretch run. Mitchell and Boston have shouldered heavy loads, and their continued production will determine whether Indiana stays in playoff position. Relying on a veteran rotation also raises questions about development for younger players if the team falls out of the running. This period will reveal not just the roster’s depth, but the franchise’s approach to sustaining performance through adversity.

Beyond this season, the setback highlights how fragile a title push can be in a league where a single injury reshapes a roster’s ceiling. The Fever will likely weigh roster decisions and minutes for the 2026 campaign as they chase a postseason entry that already looked precarious before Cunningham’s injury.

Highlights

The coming weeks will show how far this Fever roster can travel with less experience and more responsibility.