Fever’s Sophie Cunningham responds to backlash over comments about Cleveland, Detroit as WNBA expansion sites

Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham faced criticism for comments about the WNBA choosing Cleveland and Detroit as two of its next markets for expansion. 

The league announced that those two cities and Philadelphia will be getting WNBA teams by the end of 2030 in an announcement earlier this week, prompting Cunningham to question whether players wanted those cities to be chosen for expansion. 

“I don’t know how excited people are to be going to Detroit or [Cleveland],” Cunningham told reporters on July 1.

Cunningham clarified her comments while speaking to reporters on Thursday, and defended “blue-collar working people” associated with Cleveland and Detroit.

“First of all, I know the history of the WNBA. I know that both of those cities have had teams before, and they got us where we’re at, so I’m thankful for that,” she said. “All I was really getting at was Broadway, the off-court lifestyle and so I think that is really intriguing. I think Miami’s intriguing. That’s all I was getting at.”

“I think it would be fun to get some teams outside of the NBA market . . . . I think people totally misread the situation. I would never speak down upon middle-class, blue-collar working people. That’s where I come from. I’m from Missouri. I get I’m in Indiana, and that’s why I’m kind of hinting at Broadway sounds fun, Miami sounds fun. That’s all I was getting at.”

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Cunningham also addressed the backlash to her comments. 

“The people that hype you up are going to be the same people pushing you down. And so for me, I always just kind of stay right here in the middle. I think that was my personal opinion,” she said.

Cunningham comes from a family of southern farmers.

A five-part feature series by Cunningham’s alma mater, the University of Missouri, recounted her family’s southern farm roots. 

Cunningham learned to ride horses and drove four-wheelers to the family’s grain silos. 

“So much of our success goes back to what we learned here,” Cunningham said of working on the farm. “We loved coming out to the farm to help. We found out how to work hard and work together. It made us farm strong.”

Cunningham even had a special name for her farmer grandparents: “Maw Maw and Paw Paw.”

However, Cunningham suggested glitzier markets for WNBA expansion in her initial criticisms, pointing to Miami and Kansas City.

“Like, where do they want to play? Where are they going to get excited to play and draw fans? I think Miami would have been a great one. Everyone loves Florida. Nashville is an amazing city. Kansas City — amazing opportunity. There’s a huge arena downtown that no one’s using,” Cunningham said. “I’m not so sure what the thought process is there.

“At the end of the day, you don’t want to expand our league too fast. We don’t want teams to totally dominate and some that aren’t. It’s a hard situation, but, man, I don’t know how excited people are to be going to Detroit or [Cleveland].”

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