WNBA's hottest star doesn't look like this anymore

One of the most in-demand and hottest WNBA stars has had quite the glow-up since the days of turning plenty of heads as a blue-chip prep prospect in Mid-Missouri. 

Through her time as a starter for powerhouse Rock Bridge, where the Bruins won a state championship every year she attended the school, then a straight shot down Providence Road at Mizzou, she has garnered plenty of attention both on and off the court. 

She was dubbed as 'The Mayor of Columbia' due to her popularity in her hometown, which doubled with opposing Southeastern Conference fan bases despising her. That synergy was only a preview for what she'd accomplish in the WNBA. 

That dynamo is none other than Indiana Fever bombshell Sophie Cunningham, who has never been more popular in basketball than she is now. 

Cunningham's team-up with Caitlin Clark put plenty more eyes on the 6-foot-1 guard, who turns 29 on Saturday. 

Shades of her college days played out in June in a game against the Connecticut Sun, further endearing Cunningham to Fever fans, while raising her notoriety around the league. 

In January 2018, Cunningham was involved in a fight as a member of the Missouri Tigers against rivals South Carolina.  

The incident became a fever pitch in her college career, with now Las Vegas Aces leader A'ja Wilson in her senior year for the Gamecocks.  

'It's so fun because our league has drawn so much more attention... (and) once you get people there, they fall in love with the game, but they also fall in love with who we are off the court,' Cunningham told the Daily Mail in April. 

'I like to go out there, I like to be competitive. I like to be a little bit grimy, a little feisty. But off the court, I like to be girly. I like fashion. I think you can do both.'

And it was her feisty side that made headlines a few months ago, when her on-court grit thrust her into the spotlight again. 

Clark was prodded in the eye by Connecticut's Jacy Sheldon, who had previously been caught in a heated exchange with the Fever guard, before being slammed to the floor by Marina Mabrey in a violent moment that sparked outrage.

Mabrey escaped with a mere technical, while Sheldon was handed a flagrant 1. But Cunningham wasn't letting it slide. 

With 46.1 seconds remaining in the game, Cunningham wrapped her arms around Sun guard Sheldon's head and pulled her to the ground in an act of revenge after her foul on Clark.

Cunningham's first six seasons in the WNBA were arguably the first time since she started ninth grade that was not a focal point of her team. In year No 7, especially during Clark's lengthy injury absence, that is no longer the case.   

And from the offset she made a vow to the rest of the league: She’ll back Clark no matter what. Or, as she put it, her job is to be Sabrina Carpenter to Clark, the WNBA's Taylor Swift.

Carpenter opened for Swift on her Eras Tour, and Cunningham explained to the Daily Mail: 'Taylor Swift, Caitlin Clark, they're going to do their thing. They're going to have all the eyes, they're going to have anything you can ask for.

'But I just said I'm going to be the Sabrina Carpenter in the corner, being her biggest supporter, doing whatever the team needs... she does a great job of making everyone else around her better. (But) in order to win, it really does take everybody.'

Cunningham added: 'We're not taking away from anything that she's done. We want to help her. We want to all win. And I think, let her be the Taylor Swift and we'll all be right there supporting.'

She insisted that she would pass on all she mined over six seasons at the Mercury alongside WNBA legends such as Diana Taurasi.

'I've learned how to become a pro. I've learned what she does in order to be great,' Cunningham said. 'Caitlin is going to (get) there. But when you don't have that experience, sometimes you need someone to kind of lean on. So I'm just going to be there for whatever she needs.'

Cunningham has come a long way since her start in Columbia, which included playing for Rock Bridge's football team, filling in during the Bruins' playoff run after the starting kicker went down with an ACL injury. 

Now, she's can't-miss television and a must-follow on social media, drawing plenty of eyes on and off the hardwood.