One could argue that the 2026 WNBA season has been the best season in the league. From record-breaking viewership and 15 WNBA teams to the historic Collective Bargaining Agreement, everything has proven that the league is rapidly growing. However, the biggest story coming out of the season has been the controversy around Enes Kanter and Sophie Cunningham’s comments on transgender participation. According to Cunningham herself, it was because the WNBA media wasn’t covering the on-court basketball.
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“I think the WNBA media pretty much covers everything but basketball… I might be one of the best three-point shooters in our league, but I should never be like 16th in All-Star voting,” she said on the first episode of her new podcast ‘No Hesitation on September 11.
When the All-Star voting results were published on July 2, 2026, Cunningham received the fourth-highest vote among the Indiana Fever stars. She was behind Aliyah Boston, Caitlin Clark, and Kelsey Mitchell. Fans’ votes accounted for 50% of the total, while media and players accounted for 25% each.
However, Cunningham’s ranking in fan voting had a similar trend. In the first fan vote return for this year’s All-Stars, she ranked 17th among all players. In the second fan vote return, Cunningham’s rank had improved to 15th.
“I think it’s not really like who the best is. It’s like who has the most social following or who people like the most… And so I think there’s a little bit of that in the NBA too.”
“I think the voting stuff is weird; it’s very political. I think there are a lot of people who are really great who don’t get the credit because maybe they don’t have the popularity or they don’t have the platform.”
Popularity does help a player get more votes, at least from fans. However, many players like her teammate Mitchell, Allisha Gray, and Natasha Howard, with very little social media popularity, were able to get more votes from fans and the media.
Moreover, Cunningham is herself one of the most famous WNBA players. She is the second most-followed WNBA player on Instagram, second only to Angel Reese. Right now, Cunningham has more Instagram followers than Caitlin Clark, arguably the most famous WNBA player in the world.
This is not the first time that Cunningham has taken issue with All-Star Weekend events. After the participants for the All-Star 3-point Contest were made public. Cunningham wasn’t happy about not finding herself on the list. She has been one of the best 3-point shooters in the league in the last few years, prompting her to call out the WNBA on social media.
“I mean, I don’t make any of those decisions. I don’t even know who makes those decisions.”
“The league always gets in the league’s way. I would have done it. I would have loved to win some money. I need to buy a boat, so that would have been fun. But it’s fine,” she said before the Fever’s game vs. the Connecticut Sun in July.
This season she is shooting 43.7% from the 3-point line, which is her career best. While she isn’t a volume shooter in the league, her efficiency has been a big part of the Indiana Fever’s success. Clark was reportedly invited to the 3-point shooting contest, but she declined.
Recently, Sophie Cunningham has become a part of the larger transgender participation controversy. On her July 21 ESPN profile, she revealed her views on trans athletes participating in women’s sports.
“I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men.”
Her views on the issue kicked off a controversy that still hasn’t completely died down. Cunningham herself faced a mix of backlash and support for her comments. Activists and fans on both sides of the argument have demonstrated outside the arenas during Fever games, but Cunningham believes now it’s time to move on and focus on the basketball.