Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham became a focal point in the basketball world after she grabbed Connecticut Sun’s Jacy Sheldon by the neck and threw her down in the final minute of their June 17 game, likely in retaliation for Marina Mabrey’s earlier shove of Caitlin Clark. Both Cunningham and Sheldon were ejected.
Cunningham faced a $400 fine for the incident, but her visibility surged, as noted in a June 20 Sportico article by Jacob Feldman. In just three days, she gained nearly 700,000 TikTok followers and over 244,000 on Instagram, per Social Blade analytics, bringing her totals to over 1 million and 730,000, respectively. Fans have nicknamed her “the Enforcer” online, and her jerseys sold out on the team store until July 8.
Feldman reported that gaining such a following organically would cost a brand over $1 million, per STN Digital’s estimates. Addison Abdo, senior director at PRP, called the growth “unprecedented,” noting it was unlike anything seen even among other viral athletes.
Cunningham’s $400 fine for the flagrant foul ultimately translated into a social media boost worth an estimated $1 million.
In essence, Sophie Cunningham’s neck-grabbing incident with Jacy Sheldon catapulted her to superstardom, sparking a social media surge worth an estimated $1 million in follower growth. The $400 fine and her show of loyalty to teammate Caitlin Clark proved to be a small price to pay for the massive boost in fame and fan support.
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