For nearly two weeks, Sophie Cunningham and Cheryl Reeve found themselves on opposite sides of one of the WNBA’s biggest off-court debates. Their differing views sparked protests, drew national attention and became a talking point well beyond basketball. But before either addressed the media again, the two met face-to-face in Minneapolis for a private conversation that neither described as confrontational.
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Speaking after Fever practice on August 5, Cunningham said the conversation stood out because it happened in person instead of through social media.
“I respect her for coming up in person,” Cunningham told reporters. “A lot of people hide behind screens. She had stories about her point of view, and I had stories about my point of view. We left with love and respect. In the end it’s all about that.”
The meeting stemmed from Cunningham’s July 21 ESPN profile interview, where she shared her views on transgender athletes competing in women’s sports. The comments quickly became one of the league’s biggest off-court storylines, leading to demonstrations outside multiple Fever games before she and Reeve finally spoke in person.
In that interview, Cunningham said she wanted to protect girls’ locker rooms and women’s sports while emphasizing that she was speaking from her personal beliefs.
“I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans. And I’m like, ‘I never once said that. ‘I think that I am here to extend love. But I also think with that love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men.”
Cunningham stood by those remarks two days later, telling reporters, “I think I said what I said. I think it’s kind of common sense. And I think I’ll always believe in that.” She also said her beliefs came from personal convictions while insisting she did not hate transgender people.
The debate soon extended beyond interviews. Demonstrations followed the Fever during their road trip, including outside Target Center before Indiana’s August 2 game against Minnesota. Cunningham was booed throughout the contest, even as league records showed there are no openly transgender women on an active WNBA roster.
Reeve addressed Cunningham’s comments before the teams met in Minneapolis, making it clear her disagreement centered on how the issue had been framed rather than simply the debate itself. Ahead of the August 2 game, the Lynx coach also wore a light blue “Trans Kids Belong” shirt during warmups before later speaking with Cunningham at midcourt.
“It is not the case that we have, quote, ‘biological men in girls’ locker rooms,’ the way it’s being phrased,” Reeve said during her August 1 media availability. “The innuendo there that somehow transgender women are predators of some kind in the locker room is simply not what’s happening.” She later added, “I come from a space of inclusion. The narrative that I think is problematic is to suggest that transgender athletes are the biggest problem in women’s sports.”
Despite their public disagreement, the two kept their conversation private. Neither Cunningham nor Reeve revealed exactly what was discussed, but both described it in similar terms afterward. Reeve said they spoke because both understood the responsibility that comes with having a public platform. “Both of us understand that we have platforms and we both talked about wanting to, more than anything, educate,” she said after Minnesota’s 108-100 win. “It was nice to be in person, for sure.”
After discussing the issue with Reeve, Cunningham shifted her focus away from the controversy and toward the coverage surrounding it. Speaking after practice on August 5, Cunningham questioned why conversations around the Fever had become dominated by off-court storylines instead of basketball. “The WNBA media, all we ever do is cover everything except basketball. You can talk about other things; those are great stories. It shows fans who people outside of the court, but I think we have to keep the main thing, the main thing.”
While neither Cunningham nor Reeve suggested their conversation changed their positions, both described it as respectful and worth having in person. After weeks of public debate, that may have been the one point on which they fully agreed.