DiJonai Carrington faces another WNBA fine days after Sophie Cunningham incident originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
DiJonai Carrington has found herself in trouble with WNBA officials once again. Four days after Carrington was ejected for a hard foul on Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham, the Chicago Sky guard received a technical foul during Wednesday night’s game against the Golden State Valkyries.
Carrington believed she was fouled while attacking the basket late in the third quarter. After no whistle came, she voiced her frustration to an official and was assessed the technical. It was Carrington’s second technical foul of the season, meaning the call also carries a financial consequence under the WNBA’s fine structure.
DiJonai Carrington hit with another costly penalty
Players are fined $500 for each of their first three technical fouls of a season. Technical fouls Nos. 4 through 7 carry a $1,000 penalty. If a player reaches eight technical fouls, the punishment increases to a $1,500 fine and an automatic one-game suspension. Each additional pair of technicals after the eighth results in another suspension.
DiJonai Carrington not happy with no call on the shot 😬
— USA Sports (@usasports) August 13, 2026
She receives a technical foul.#WNBAonUSA | Sky ☁️ | Valkyries ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/rL9OYfxrQR
Carrington remains well below that threshold with only two technicals, but the timing of her latest penalty is notable. During Saturday’s game against Indiana, Carrington struck Cunningham in the head while attempting to make a defensive play late in the first quarter. Officials initially called a common foul before upgrading it to a Flagrant 2 following a video review.
The ruling resulted in Carrington’s immediate ejection. A Flagrant 2 is also worth two flagrant-foul points and carries a $1,000 fine. Carrington is now two flagrant points away from an automatic one-game suspension. According to league rules, a player who accumulates four or five flagrant points receives a one-game ban following the next Flagrant 1. Another Flagrant 2 would trigger a two-game suspension.
Technical fouls and flagrant points are tracked separately, so Wednesday’s incident does not move Carrington closer to a flagrant-related suspension. It does, however, add another fine to an increasingly eventful week.
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Carrington must avoid further trouble during Sky’s final stretch
Carrington is known for playing with emotion and physicality, two qualities that have helped make her one of the league’s more disruptive perimeter defenders. The Sky need that edge, but they also need Carrington to remain available.
Chicago has only 10 games remaining in its season and little room for avoidable mistakes. Carrington’s Flagrant 2 against Cunningham removed her from a key matchup with Indiana before the first quarter ended, forcing the Sky to adjust without one of their most experienced guards.
Her technical against Golden State did not result in another ejection, but it reinforced how quickly frustration can become costly.
Carrington must now walk a careful line over the remainder of the season. She can continue bringing the aggression that defines her game, but another dangerous play could leave Chicago without her at a critical point.
The Sky will return to action Sunday against the Seattle Storm.