Sophie Cunningham and the Indiana Fever have another week off until their next game on Sept. 18, hitting the road to face Sandy Brondello and the Toronto Tempo. The Fever entered the break with a 26-14 record on the 2026 WNBA season after taking down Aaliyah Edwards and the Connecticut Sun 111-91 on August 28, good for fifth place in the WNBA standings.
Cunningham has been an integral part of Stephanie White’s team during the 2026 season, her second in Indiana. Coming off the bench for a majority of her games, the former Phoenix Mercury guard is averaging 8.3 points on 46.9% shooting and 2.3 rebounds per game.
But during the WNBA break for the 2026 FIBA World Cup, Cunningham has taken the time to visit her hometown in Missouri. And while Cunningham spends time with her own family, Indiana welcomed a new member to the Fever family over the break as well.
Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images
Karima Christmas-Kelly spent 10 years in the WNBA from 2011 to 2020, playing for numerous teams, including the Fever. She called it quits after the 2020 season, ending her career with a WNBA championship in 2012 as a member of the Tulsa Shock. But in 2023, Christmas-Kelly returned to the WNBA, initially joining Christie Sides’ coaching staff as one of Indiana’s assistant coaches, and has remained there since, even with Stephanie White joining the team last year.
In 2017, during her playing career, Christmas-Kelly got married to Austin Kelly, whom she met during their time with the Duke Blue Devils. And sure enough, after spending two years assisting White on the Connecticut Sun, Kelly followed her to Indiana, joining his wife as an assistant coach on the Fever.
In 2023, the Kellys welcomed their first child, Zayn, and during the WNBA break, they welcomed their second child and first daughter, Kali. And on Wednesday, the Fever showed their support to the Kelly family, congratulating Karima and Austin on social media.
“welcome to the Fever fam, Kali! 🫶,” the Indiana Fever wrote on Instagram. “congrats to assistant coaches Karima Christmas-Kelly and Austin Kelly on the newest addition to their family 🥳”
Cunningham took notice of her coaches’ big day, sending her support in the comments section as well: “Kali🥹💕.”
Cunningham and the Fever will face the Tempo on Friday, Sept. 18, at 7:30 p.m. ET.
