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“We know she’s a good rookie, and she is going to get some whistles, but to get the treatment she got last night was crazy. Crazy.” That’s what Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham said of the calls Paige Bueckers got in their matchup earlier in the week.
Bueckers, the Dallas Wings superstar and likely favorite for Rookie of the Year, wasn’t paying those comments too much mind. “Everyone is entitled to their own unique personal opinion,” she said before Friday’s game against the Los Angeles Sparks.
Paige Bueckers on Sophie Cunningham’s comments about the referees giving her foul calls last game: “Everyone is entitled to their own unique personal opinion.”
— Joey Mistretta (@JoeyMistretta_) August 15, 2025
READ MORE: Fever’s Sophie Cunningham rips WNBA officiating over Paige Bueckers
Cunningham’s criticisms were interesting, as Bueckers only shot four free throws in that matchup against the Indiana Fever on Tuesday, but Sophie Cunningham and Lexie Hull were each called for four fouls. There were a lot of off-ball foul calls, but criticism of the WNBA officials is nothing new this season, as Cunningham has been fined multiple times for it.
Here are Cunningham’s full comments about the officiating from her podcast, “Show Me Something,” about the 81-80 Dallas Wings win over Indiana.
“I love Paige to death, do not get me wrong. I think she’s a hell of a player and would love to play with her one day, but those refs were giving her every freaking whistle last night. Like you literally couldn’t touch her, couldn’t touch her. And that s**t is so annoying to me. And you’re going to do that, then give it to our guards.
“…She’s already gonna be a GOAT, she’s gonna be a Hall of Famer, everyone knows it. But getting some of those whistles already, oh my.”
Cunningham’s coach, Stephanie White, agreed with that sentiment. “I think there’s a double standard in how people get their calls. I think Kelsey Mitchell, number one, is held or chucked on every freaking possession and never gets a call off the ball. I think Aliyah Boston is the worst officiated post player in the league. She never gets a call. There’s a double standard there, certainly. “
The WNBA’s officiating has been called into question all season, and there are a lot of people who feel like Bueckers could be getting more calls.
Buckers is only averaging 4.3 free-throw attempts per game and has a free-throw rate of 28%. She’s 20th in the WNBA in total free-throw attempts, and she’s nowhere near the top in free-throw rate. She’s the top-scoring option on the team, so she’s naturally going to get more opportunities, but it hasn’t felt like she’s gotten the benefit of the doubt from the whistle all season.
READ MORE: Dallas Wings can play spoiler in WNBA playoff race
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