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Popular Indiana Fever player Sophie Cunningham has clarified comments she made earlier this week where she expressed disappointment with the WNBA expanding to Detroit and Cleveland.
Cunningham shared that she would have liked for the WNBA to add teams in Miami and Nashville, because she believes more WNBA players would enjoy playing there.
“I don’t know how excited people are to be going to Detroit or [Cleveland],” she added.
Cunningham received plenty of backlash for those comments. A couple of days after her initial remarks, she walked back her comments and clarified what she was trying to say.
She made sure to include that she understands the importance of Cleveland and Detroit to the history of the WNBA. Both cities previously had franchises in the league.
“OK, first of all, I know the history behind the WNBA. I know that both of those cities have had teams before and got us where we’re at, so I’m thankful for that,“ Cunningham said. ”All I was really getting at is like, Broadway (in Nashville), the off-court lifestyle. So I think that is really intriguing. I think Miami’s intriguing. That’s all I was getting at.
“I think people totally misread that 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 kind of why I’m hinting at Broadway sounds fun, Sophie in Miami sounds fun. All I was getting at.”
It was announced last week that Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia are adding WNBA franchises.
Nashville, St. Louis, Austin, Houston and Miami also placed bids to add teams but were denied.
Cunningham added that she was disappointed with the backlash she received for her original comments but was also not surprised.
“I mean, the people that hype you up are going to be the same people that shoot you down,” she said. “So for me, I always just kind of stay right here in the middle. I think that was my personal opinion. It’s me, like, people are going to love me, people are going to hate me. I think that’s with anyone. And so that’s just what it is.”
Sophie Cunningham played college basketball at Missouri, before being drafted by the Phoenix Mercury in the second round of the 2019 WNBA Draft.
She is now in her first season with the Indiana Fever and recently helped Indiana to a win over the Minnesota Lynx in the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup Championship.
Cunningham is averaging 5.3 points and 4 rebounds per game on the season.
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