PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) 鈥� Sophie Cunningham says she’s unconcerned that the rallies against transgender participation in women’s sports that have accompanied the Indiana’s Fever’s recent games are a distraction for the team.
Cunningham made the comments before the Fever’s game Friday night against the Portland Fire. Outside, a group rallied for the second straight game in support of Cunningham and her recent comments about transgender athletes.
鈥淚 think at the end of the day, I come in and I do my job,鈥� Cunningham said. “I think everyone who knows me personally, they know that I鈥檓 full of love. I鈥檓 bubbly. I love the people around me. I love basketball. I love inspiring the next generation and doing that in a positive light. And so that doesn鈥檛 even cross my mind. Doesn鈥檛 cross my teammates鈥� minds.
鈥淎nd again, I鈥檓 here to play basketball, but I鈥檓 also here to be me, and I鈥檓 not gonna like shadow that or hide or, you know, dim my light just because maybe people don鈥檛 agree with that.鈥�
Portland’s rally came after a similar rally for Cunningham earlier in the week . Both rallies only attracted about two dozen participants and a bevy of onlookers.
鈥淚 have honestly had nothing to do with them,鈥� Cunningham said. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 people just practicing their rights of freedom of speech and doing what other fans have been doing since the WNBA has started. And so props to them, props to everyone who is able to be competent and be bold and courageous enough to to speak their truths.鈥�
Another rally was planned for Sunday in Minneapolis when the Fever play the Minnesota Lynx.
In Seattle on Monday, two Cunningham supporters sat courtside at Climate Change Arena holding signs. A co-owner of the Storm, Celeste Keaton for an exchange with the two supporters.
The Storm also apologized for the incident, but did not provide details about the exchange.
鈥淲e remain committed to creating a welcoming and respectful environment for anyone who attends a Storm game,鈥� the Storm said.
The Seattle rally promoted statewide ballot initiative, IL26-638, that would bar transgender students from participating in girls鈥� athletics at Washington schools. It also praised Cunningham, who voiced support for barring transgender athletes from girls鈥� and women鈥檚 sports in recent interviews.
鈥淚 am here to be a cheerleader for Sophie Cunningham, who has so bravely put her head above the parapet to protect women and girls in our sports and in our locker rooms,鈥� said Amy Souza, who was among those at the rally. 鈥淚 was an organizer of this event, I was a co-organizer of the Seattle event. I鈥檓 also here, standing in solidarity with those teen girls who, unfortunately, were harassed when they were just trying to be fans of the sport, fans of Sophie Cunningham.鈥�
Cunningham was booed by the Moda Center crowd in Portland when she entered the game midway though the first quarter. Many waved small pink, blue and white transgender flags.
The Fever entered the game on a four-game winning streak and had won eight of their last 10. Coach Stephanie White said she was concerned that the controversy was distracting from the team’s play.
鈥淵ou know there is a frustration, of course, because we want to we want to talk about basketball and we want to continue to work on our game and we want to continue to grow as a team.,鈥� White said. 鈥淏ut I also understand this is part of our growth edge as a league, right? It鈥檚 part of our growth as a league, and we have to to be able to manage, we have to be able to insulate as much as we can, and then we have to be able to lead with conversation.鈥�
___
AP WNBA:
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
