Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham has found herself at the center of a national debate following her views on transgender athletes competing in women’s sports. What began as a debate over athletic fairness has rapidly escalated into a political discussion, turning Cunningham into a polarizing figure on TV.
As a result, the WNBA media landscape has become deeply split over Cunningham, with some defending her position and others criticizing it.
Reporter Jon Root Called Out Podcasters for Their Sophie Cunningham Criticism
Recently, The Athletic’s “The Sports Gossip Show” joined the trans-athlete discussion. Reporter Jon Root strongly objected to the hosts’ comments and shared a clip on X. In the clip, the hosts discussed Cunningham’s recent public appearances.
“She most recently posed with Riley Gaines, who was a swimmer, not even a very good one, who is super anti-trans women in sports,” Charlotte Wilder said.
“And she also posed for a picture with the Levi’s executive, Jennifer Sey. And this was at a game. And both of the Riley and Jennifer wore t-shirts that were anti-trans. And Cunningham even held up Riley Gaines’s sign, which read, ‘Sophie, thank you – a girl mom.'”
BE THE GM OF YOUR FAVORITE TEAM: PFN’s FREE NFL Mock Draft Simulator
The criticism then became more direct as the hosts questioned Cunningham’s motives.
“It is so clear at this point that Sophie Cunningham is doing a pretty blatant right-wing grift,” Wilder added.
The other host, Madeline Hill, followed with a similar argument:
“She’s doing a hard pivot right. And I just think that she knows what she’s doing. And she knows that ultimately her basketball career is only going to be so long. She’s not the best player. She’s not… Well, it feels like a move out of Trump’s playbook. Everything is television. Everything is pop culture and tabloidy.”
PREDICT THE NFL SEASON: PFN’s FREE NFL Playoff Predictor
However, Root argued that the hosts were holding Cunningham to a different standard.
“This ‘sports’ show from The Athletic (New York Times) just showcases one of the biggest hurdles to protecting women sports & spaces, is liberal women,” he wrote. “These woke hacks know nothing about sports. They made excuses for Dianna Russini, yet shame Sophie Cunningham. Insane.”
This “sports” show from The Athletic (New York Times) just showcases on of the biggest hurdles to protecting women sports & spaces, is liberal women
These woke hacks know nothing about sports.
They made excuses for Dianna Russini, yet shame Sophie Cunningham.
Insane. pic.twitter.com/4xrpCxBLK6
— Jon Root (@JonnyRoot_) August 6, 2026
Root then shared another clip on his X account, comparing their criticism of the Fever star with their earlier defense of Russini during the controversy involving New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel.
In that clip, the same “The Sports Gossip Show” hosts compared Russini’s reported romantic getaway with Vrabel to Adam Schefter sending unpublished stories to sources.
“Dumbest comparison & weakest claim of sexism I’ve heard so far,” Root wrote on X.
The situation is far more complicated because The Athletic itself launched an internal investigation into the Russini controversy, even as podcast hosts defended her. More than three months have passed without The Athletic publicly releasing its findings. As a result, fans and media members have continued to question the delay.
Regarding Cunningham, she recently appeared on USA Network to discuss the latest developments in the WNBA’s transgender athlete debate.
“I know that people are not always going to align and agree; I totally understand that,” Cunningham said. “But I think the most important thing is having that respect, having that love, and pursuing peace in these conversations, in these debates, because I think that is healthy.”
For now, Cunningham has shown no signs of changing her approach. She continues to address the issue publicly while standing by her call for respectful discussion.
