Sophie Cunningham says the WNBA does not have to choose between talking about the backlash around her comments and talking about basketball. The Indiana Fever guard, made that case as she signed autographs for fans before an Aug. 16 matchup against the Atlanta Dream at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.
Her remarks landed while the attention around her keeps growing. Cunningham's profile has surged since a July story quoted her on protecting women's sports by banning transgender girls and women from participating, and Support Sophie Cunningham demonstrations have become a common sight outside Fever games since then. She said she wants the conversation to include what she said, but also what her team is doing on the floor. "Ask me about what's going on and what I said. And also ask me how great my teammates are doing, how great our team is doing, how great the league is doing," she said. "We can be a great example of how to do both." That pitch comes at a time when the Fever have given the league plenty to discuss beyond the dispute. Indiana was 24-12 and riding five straight wins, with Cunningham shooting 44.5% from 3-point range, Kelsey Mitchell at 43.7% and averaging 24.2 points, Caitlin Clark at 22 points per game on 45% shooting, and Aliyah Boston at 17 points and 8.7 rebounds. Clark also won player of the week for the fourth time this season on Aug. 18. The basketball has been strong enough to stand on its own, even as the noise outside the arena has not gone away. That is the part Cunningham keeps pressing against. She said she wants the focus returned to basketball and that her goal remains to protect the locker room and highlight the level the Fever are playing at. But the comments that drew national attention have only widened the debate, and the demonstrations outside games show how far beyond one interview it has spread. Coach Stephanie White said the task is not to silence the noise, but to minimize it and use it to pull the team closer together. The league, for its part, said on Aug. 17 that it does not moderate or have any affiliation with the r/WNBA subreddit, after the subreddit posted its own clarification. What the WNBA does next, if anything, remains the unanswered piece.
