Sophie Cunningham doesn't shy away from Fever's hard truth

Sophie Cunningham rarely has a problem for calling it like she sees it, and that trait was on full display while she spoke to reporters following the Fever's practice Thursday, July 10. While addressing what went wrong during the team's 81-60 loss at home against the Valkyries, Cunningham acknowledged the that the Fever needs to be better for the fans. "We owe them," she said. "We owe everyone at this point.

Cunningham insisted the Fever is "never going to shoot 30% again — I hope" because the team has "too [many] offensive weapons on the floor to be shooting like that."

The Fever have work to do

What went wrong for the Fever was also addressed by her teammates Caitlin Clark and Lexie Hull as well as coach Stephanie White after Wednesday's game.

"I'm not sure if it's not knowing the game plan... as much as not executing the game plan," White told reporters. "Our attention to detail, our discipline. I felt like our energy and our competitive fire was not there, and that's disappointing."

Clark echoed this assessment, and added, "We struggled scouting report-wise. We struggled [with] personnel. We struggled to do what the coaches asked of us."

The Fever will play the Dream on Friday

The Fever will next host the Atlanta Dream at home on Friday, July 11. The Dream, who are enjoying a successful season after adding a few key pieces to the team during free agency, are currently ranked fourth in the league and will be a tough team for the Fever to beat.

But the Fever will have to dig deep and find a way, Cunningham also said. She noted that the team was "out of whack" during Wednesday's game, and seemed to have lost their rhythm. "You've got to step up and knock down your shots," she added, "and that's myself included."

The game, and especially White's comments in the post-game press conference, sparked a lot of debate and even derision among a notoriously outspoken and opinionated fan base. It's understandable that many fans want to see Clark able to take control, hit a series of 3s, and the Fever win the game, but the reality is that Wednesday's game — which took place only days before the season's midway point — is the first the team has played with their full roster available and not injured.

As White also pointed out Thursday, the team hasn't even had many practices this season when every member of the team has been available. The Fever has been hit by injuries — Clark and Cunningham have both missed several games this season — as well as by international obligations (Damiris Dantas left to play in AmeriCup, where she earned a silver medal with Brazil) and a period of 15 days that saw DeWanna Bonner sitting out games until she was waived and able to sign with the Mercury.

It might sound outlandish considering how far into the season the team is, but in many ways the Fever is just now getting the opportunity to figure out what works and what doesn't. All too often, the best way to do so is live in a game, a reality that can be tough for fans to soldier through.