The Drama Behind WNBA Star Sophie Cunningham’s TikTok That Cost Her $500

Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham was hit with a $500 fine in mid-July 2025 after posting a TikTok that publicly criticized WNBA referees, literally tagging “@some refs” in the text overlay.

The video is set to a sound that sings, “Stupid, or is it slow… maybe it’s useless,” which many interpreted as her way of saying the refs were exactly that.

If you haven’t been keeping up with the June and July 2025 games between the Connecticut Sun and the Indiana Fever, you’ve missed a whole lot of drama. Sophie’s viral TikTok (posted on July 17, 2025) was just the latest response in a heated back-and-forth.

Here’s why she was fined and what prompted the TikTok.

Since Sophie's July 17, 2025, TikTok publicly criticized refs, she was fined $500, as the WNBA considers this prohibited behavior. Did she deserve it? Technically, yes. But was the video out of line? Not really.

It seems the video was Sophie’s way of saying, “I’ve had enough. " By enough, she presumably means the issues that appeared to have started on June 17, during the Connecticut Sun vs. Indiana Fever game.

That’s when Caitlin Clark got poked in the eye during an altercation with Jacy Sheldon. As she was trying to walk it off, Marina Mabrey aggressively shoved her to the floor. (Honestly, it looked intentional.)

And Sophie wasn’t going for it, as later on, she can be seen pulling Marina down to the ground.

Fast-forward to the rematch in July, and it looked like the Sun came ready to retaliate against Sophie. Multiple fouls were made, and it doesn’t seem like any were called. In the fourth quarter, Olivia Nelson-Ododa lifted her elbow toward Sophie once but didn’t swing. The team then carried out the same exact play, but this time, Olivia delivered the elbow above Sophie’s shoulder with enough force to knock her to the ground.

Still, no whistle. Then came another moment where Sophie was driving to the basket when Marina appeared to knock her out of bounds with her body intentionally. But instead of Marina getting called for a foul, Sophie was hit with stepping out of bounds.

All she could do was laugh it off, telling the ref, “I know you saw it.”

Did Sophie expect the fine when she posted the TikTok? Probably, as she’s likely aware of the league’s rules. Did she care? Most likely not. With all the bad calls and missed fouls during the games between the Indiana Fever and Connecticut Sun, which were obvious, it seems she was fed up.

She was (probably) willing to take the fine in exchange for voicing her frustration in the most passive-aggressive way possible.

And she clearly has support from fans, as many flooded the comments, urging her to share her CashApp or start a GoFundMe to help cover the fine.