We reported on the flagrant foul on Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham that got Chicago Sky shooting guard DiJonai Carrington tossed from a game played between the two teams. Cunningham basically got clotheslined and taken to the ground.
Maybe one of the most unusual things following the incident was the comment from Cunningham’s coach, the Indiana Fever’s Stephanie White, defending Carrington.
Warning for graphic language:
Head coach of Indiana Fever Stephanie White goes out of her way to defend DiJonai Carrington
pic.twitter.com/KeMJu0VGtX— Defiant L’s (@DefiantLs) August 10, 2026
But on Tuesday, White let loose with an angry rant against the people who had criticized her reaction to the foul, and tried to backpedal, saying she hadn’t watched the play on video before speaking. She said this was directed toward the online community that was trying to be divisive.
Stephanie White made the following statement before tonight’s game: pic.twitter.com/VkYThRldsu
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) August 11, 2026
You know, this isn’t necessarily for those people that are in this room. This is more for an online community that’s trying to create narratives that simply don’t exist. Trying to create a fabrication or distortion of who I am, of what I’m about. Our players’ success, our players’ health and wellness, our players’ safety is always a top priority for me. One of the things I pride myself on is my relationships with players.
“For those who have anything to say about the play in the last game? I didn’t see the play in real time. I went straight to a press conference. I thought the play got called right. Thankfully, Sophie’s okay. Was it egregious? Absolutely. When you have a chance to watch that over and over and over on replay, you can see that. I didn’t have that in real time.”
She’s saying she didn’t see it in real time. What was she doing, then, in real time? And, of course, there had to have been some bench discussion of it, as well. Why was she offering up her opinion that it wasn’t an intentional foul, if she didn’t see it?
White said she has her players’ backs, “10 toes down all the time, all of the time.”
The reality is with me, I will always lead with love. I will also lead with grace. I will always lead with humility. And I will always lead with integrity. Doesn’t mean I’ll always get it right. I’m also human.
The hate, the fear-mongering, the divisiveness, the stuff that’s trying to hijack our league will not win. It won’t win. We are united. We are connected. We will not be divided. Every day, these women put their a** on the line. Every day. When they go low, we go high. Love will win, grace will win. Humility will win and kindness will win. I stand by them, I will always stand by them. Everybody else can go to hell.
Bizarre to say love and grace will win, and she leads with love and grace, then she says everybody else can “go to hell.” Pro tip? Maybe people aren’t really going to accept what you’re saying when you say stuff like that.
People reacted to her original comments and actions – those were on her. If she were “10 toes down,” maybe the passion she is showing now is the passion she should have had when her players were getting mistreated.
If White and/or the team thought a statement was going to cure the issue, that rant just poured some more gas on it, if the reactions were any indication.
Fever president Kelly Krauskopf issued a statement backing White.
“Coach White has done a tremendous job leading the Fever and for the second-consecutive season, has us in great position for a playoff push. She has kept our team focused and united, all while under the brightest spotlight our team and our league have ever experienced. She has the full support of leadership.”
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