Sophie Cunningham doesn't mince words after getting roughed up on Fever debut: "Have a huge target on our backs"

Sophie Cunningham was involved in a couple of physical plays in her first game with the Indiana Fever in preseason on Saturday. The veteran was body-slammed by Washington Mystics rookie Kiki Iriafen as they were jostling for a loose ball in the second quarter.

And in another incident, she also got pushed to the ground by Brittany Sykes. Her teammate DeWanna Bonner quickly came to her defense on that occasion.

During the postgame press conference, when a reporter asked about DeWanna Bonner standing up for her, Cunningham responded by acknowledging that teams will be coming at the Fever this season.

"I might need to try and hit the weight room... that was not good," Cunningham quipped. "But [DeWanna] had my back and that’s what it’s all about. We have a huge target on our backs, I don’t think that’s a secret."

Sophie Cunningham also said that she wasn't surprised watching Bonner stand up for her. She pointed out that when she was a rookie with the Phoenix Mercury, it was Bonner who was her vet, who didn't shy away from tense situations.

With Caitlin Clark on the injury list, Sophie Cunningham took over the game. She led the Fever with a game-high 21 points on 54.5% shooting from the field and 33.3% from the 3-point line as the Fever won 79-74 in overtime.

Brittney Sykes and rookie Sonia Citron led the team with 18 and 15 points, respectively, for the Mystics.

Video shows Sophie Cunningham's NSFW exchange with rookie Kiki Iriafen after flagrant foul

Despite her aggressive game, Sophie Cunningham is usually level-headed. However, fans got to see a different side of Sophie when she was fouled by Kiki Iriafen in the second quarter.

In a recent video posted on X/Twitter, Cunningham and Iriafen were seen going against each other for the rebound. When the Fever star grabbed the ball, Iriafen took it out of her hands. When Cunningham moved to grab the ball again, Iriafen caught her from behind and body-slammed her.

As Cunningham got up, she fired off some pointed words towards the Mystics rookie for her foul.

"You don't motherf****** do that. You don't motherf****** do that," she was seen telling Iriafen, while the Mystics rookie looked at her with a smile.

After an official review for a potentially hostile play, the play was ruled as Flagrant 1.

Iriafen, who was selected at No. 4 by the Mystics, didn't have a great game for herself, as she struggled on both ends. She finished the game with 7 points, 4 turnovers and 4 fouls, including 1 Flagrant 1. Iriafen shot only 28.6% from the field.