INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Fever are playing the long game with Sophie Cunningham’s ankle injury, Fever coach Stephanie White said Monday.
Especially as it’s an injury she’s reaggravated multiple times this season.
“She was a little limited today, and it’s seeing how they do in certain drills and certain actions, getting them back into game condition again,” White said. “This is an injury that she’s aggravated a few times now this season. So making sure we’re playing the long game and doing it the right way.”
Cunningham went down with her right ankle injury on May 30 after attempting to set a screen on Sun guard Jacy Sheldon, twisting her ankle, and falling to the ground. She had to be helped off the court and didn’t return to practice in any capacity until June 6.
This was the second time she injured that ankle, with the first coming in the Fever’s preseason finale on May 10. She landed on Dream guard Rhyne Howard’s foot while going for a rebound, falling to the ground in pain. She ended up being out a little over two weeks with that injury, missing the first two games of the Fever’s season and returning on May 24.
She participated in the portion of practice open to media on Monday afternoon, which consisted of midrange and 3-point shooting drills. She did not seem limited in those drills, but had some tape around her ankle while shooting and running for rebounds.
Still, it’s a process to get her and fellow injured player Caitlin Clark, who also returned to limited portions of practice on Monday, back up to game speed.
“It’s one thing to do some shooting drills. It’s another thing to get out there on the floor, get back into movement patterns, rhythm, timing,” White said. “And so that’s part of, you know, picking and choosing things that they can be in in practice, so that we can see their progression. You know, both of them being out for long periods of time, you got to work your way back into being game ready.”
Both Cunningham and Clark’s injuries put the Fever below 10 available players, so Indiana signed Aari McDonald on a hardship contract. McDonald will be with the team until either Clark or Cunningham are able to return, then she will need to be released.
The Fever play at Tuesday in Atlanta, then have a few days off before they play the New York Liberty at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Saturday.
Chloe Peterson is the Indiana Fever beat reporter for IndyStar. Reach her at capeterson@gannett.com or follow her on X at @chloepeterson67. Get IndyStar’s Indiana Fever and Caitlin Clark coverage sent directly to your inbox with our Caitlin Clark Fever newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Sophie Cunningham injury update: Fever cautious hoping to avoid another re-aggravation
Reporting by Chloe Peterson, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
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