Sophie Cunningham has received a lot of support lately.
The Indiana Fever guard was the inspiration for some fan rallies outside of arenas in both Portland and Seattle this week. Cunningham, who is in her second season with the Indiana Fever, had come out against transgender athletes in women's sports. She made her initial comments to ESPN, saying she wants to “protect young girls in the locker room” and that “they shouldn’t have to go against biological men.” She later doubled down while speaking to reporters.
“I said what I said. I think it’s kind of common sense,” Cunningham said. “And I think I’ll always believe in that. I think it’s really important to protect children, and that’s little girls who are also involved in that category. I stand on what I said.”
© Steven Bisig-Imagn Images.
In the wake of her comments, multiple prominent NFL and NBA stars have come in support of her.
Former NFL star Brian Urlacher is among those who have shown public support for the Indiana Fever guard.
"She's great. Bro, she's so fun to watch... It's unbelievable. She's so aggressive. She's fun to watch. I follow her on Instagram. She's got great stuff out there," he said.
"She just says what's true. She says common-sense things, and she gets so much backlash. She's like, 'Men should not be playing in women's sports.' Why is that so controversial? I don't get it. I don't understand it."
"It's a simple statement. She stood by it. That's what I love about when people say things: Don't back down. If you say something, stand by it. And she said it. She backed it up. She's not backing down, no matter how much heat she gets from certain people," Urlacher said.
"It's an 80-20 issue. Eighty percent of the country thinks it's true. The 20% is crushing her. Let them. Who cares? But I love that she didn't back down. I love everything she stands for. She plays hard. She's good. Like I said, I don't watch the WNBA, but I like those two girls (Cunningham and Caitlin Clark) right there."
NBA star Jalen Brunson shows support, too
The NBA Finals MVP appeared to "like" Cunningham's Instagram post after her statement went viral.
"I said what I said🫡," her post read. It was liked nearly 1 million times. Brunson and others were among those who liked it.
Cunningham has received some backlash too, of course, but she's getting a lot of support from some fellow athletes.
