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I have a question, and I promise I'm asking it in good faith, with a smile on my face and my hands raised in the universal gesture of "I genuinely just want to understand." Here it is: why does defining the word "woman" appear to be the single hardest pop quiz in professional sports right now? Because this week, not one, not two, but three WNBA head coaches were asked some version of the same basic question—should biological males compete in women's sports—and all three responded like I'd asked them to derive the Riemann hypothesis on a napkin. Indiana Fever...

Seattle Storm co-owner Celeste Keaton has been fined and suspended from attending the team's next five home games, the WNBA confirmed to Fox News Digital. The suspension and fine come after Keaton allegedly called a pair of teenage Sophie Cunningham fans "f---ing insane" during a game on Tuesday, independent Seattle-based journalist Brandi Kruse told Fox News Digital. Kruse was in the arena and accompanied the girls, who were there to watch Cunningham and the Indiana Fever take on the Storm. Cunningham addressed the incident involving Keaton in an X repost of Fox News Digital's report late Wednesday night.

Seattle Storm center Stefanie Dolson wore a shirt that said “Trans rights are human rights” before Tuesday’s 105-95 loss to the Fever, which seemed to be a direct response to Indiana guard Sophie Cunningham’s recent comments about transgender athletes. Cunningham voiced support for barring transgender athletes from girls’ and women’s sports in an ESPN article published last week — and days later, she doubled down ahead of the Fever’s win over the Connecticut Sun. After the game, a reporter asked Fever head coach Stephanie White about the anti-trans rally and Cunningham’s recent comments. A Fever spokesperson immediately stepped in and...

Sophie Cunningham and Caitlin Clark were not made available to answer postgame questions about a rally before the Indiana Fever's 105-95 win over the Seattle Storm on Tuesday night in support of Cunningham's recent comments about transgender athletes. A crowd of a few dozen gathered outside Climate Pledge Arena to both support Cunningham and promote statewide Initiatives 638 and 011, which would bar transgender students from participating in girls’ athletics at Washington schools. Cunningham voiced support for barring transgender girls and women from girls’ and women’s sports in an ESPN article published last week. Cunningham was booed by Storm fans...

Sophie Cunningham appears to be of MAGA mindset. The WNBA star, who created a firestorm over her comments about transgender athletes, has also shared videos promoting anti-immigration and other right-wing sentiments. First reported by MeidasTouch, the Indiana Fever guard reposted a video on TikTok, where she has 3.2 million followers, captioned: “the illegal immigrant conversation confuses me so much.” The re-posted creator, who also included the hashtags “MAGA” and “conservatives,” blasted undocumented people for not “following rules” and argued that those who enter the United States illegally do not deserve sympathy. “You shouldn’t have ----ing came here to begin with,”...

NaLyssa Smith is having her say on the cheating allegations posed against her by ex-girlfriend DiJonai Carrington. Carrington alleged Sunday that Smith cheated on her with multiple WNBA players, including Deja Kelly and Aaliyah Nye, before they broke up last year. Hours after the public callout on Threads, the Aces foward took to Twitch to address the situation in a nearly nine-minute video. She didn’t confirm nor deny the allegations against her. “Whether she cheated on me and I cheated on her, why are we bringing that to the internet a year later when nobody did anything to anybody? Whether...

From its founding in 1996 until today, the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) has been known as a “progressive” league. The WNBA has decried “police brutality,” “racism in all its forms,” and the “systematic oppression of Black Lives in America.” The WNBA has also been at the “forefront” of “initiatives” to “support” a variety of left-wing issues such as “gun control,” “#MeToo,” and “#BlackLivesMatter,” among others. With such a history, it is not surprising that the WNBA refused to allow players at their All-Star game to wear “USA 250” patches on their uniforms. According to Warner Todd Hutson of Breitbart...

There is an old principle, which economists call revealed preference, holding that we discover what people truly value not from what they announce but from what they do. A man may say he prefers the symphony, but if every free evening finds him at the ballpark, we have learned something his words concealed. Institutions reveal themselves the same way. A league may praise its brightest star, sell her jersey, and run her highlights, and yet, if we watch what it does when she is knocked to the floor and when its honors are handed out.... Let us begin with the...

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt expressed the Trump administration's solidarity Thursday with Sophie Cunningham, a Christian WNBA star who's been under fire for opposing men in women's sports.During a press briefing at the White House, Leavitt said she doesn't believe President Donald Trump has yet reached out to Cunningham, but is following the story of the 29-year-old Indiana Fever guard as she has fielded left-wing attacks and been mocked as "MAGA Barbie" for supporting the integrity of women's sports.Cunningham, an eight-season WNBA veteran who was re-baptized earlier this year to reaffirm her Christian faith as an adult, made headlines...

Sophie Cunningham doubles down on her transgender stance.A recent press conference appearance by Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham quickly drew widespread attention. The prominent professional basketball player faced intense questioning following her transgender comments. Several aggressive media members heavily questioned her regarding controversial opinions on biological divisions. Sports Reporters Confront Sophie Cunningham Over Divisive StanceBefore Wednesday night’s game against the Connecticut Sun, Cunningham addressed the comments she made in ESPN’s profile. Cunningham was asked about her political views and the “MAGA Barbie” nickname she has been given by some fans. “I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating...

Nancy Armour's column argues Clark's reactions to officiating fuel racist harassment of opponentsUSA Today columnist Nancy Armour wants Caitlin Clark to stop flopping and berating WNBA officials. Plenty of people agree with that take, including OutKick's Dan Dakich. Others would argue that Clark’s frustration is understandable, given the physical treatment she has received and the WNBA’s inconsistent officiating. Either way, Armour is well within her rights to criticize Clark’s behavior on the court. Armour argues that Clark’s reactions to missed calls put "Black" and "queer" WNBA players "in danger," essentially blaming Clark for alleged racist messages sent by people she...

The WNBA and its associated entities continue to be their own worst enemies when it comes to maximizing their product.Any time a good wave comes barreling in, they’d rather watch it crash on the shore than get on and ride it.It’s been obvious since sensation Caitlin Clark was drafted first overrall by the Indiana Fever in 2024.In what has become a viral meme, Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham points to Phoenix Mercury forward-guard DeWanna Bonner (not seen) following a scuffle. While there’s a never-ending push to help athletes make more money and grow the league into a sustainable enterprise with...

The WNBA is celebrating its milestone 30th season with a new All-Star initiative that the league says is designed to help keep girls involved in sports. But one of the Chicago-area organisations selected to benefit from the league’s $100,000 All-Star prize pool says on its own website that it is "moving beyond the binary of ‘girl’" and welcomes "gender-expansive participants regardless of gender identity or expression." The organisation is Girls in the Game, the charity affiliated with "Team (Teresa) Weatherspoon" in the 2026 WNBA All-Star Game. According to the league’s July 15 release, the WNBA All-Star teams will compete for...

Caitlin Clark delivered the best performance of her WNBA career Friday night, scoring a franchise-record 45 points and adding 10 assists to become the first player in league history to record a 40-point, 10-assist game.Caitlin Clark has already built a highlight reel that most players could only dream about, but Friday night may have been the finest performance of her WNBA career. Every time the Indiana Fever needed a big basket, Clark seemed to have the answer. She buried deep three-pointers, attacked the rim, knocked down free throws and continued to create easy looks for her teammates. By the time...

The WNBA wasn’t going to suspend Alyssa Thomas after landing her fist on Caitlin Clark’s throat until the NBA got involved. According to the Sports Business Journal, NBA commissioner Adam Silver had to implore WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert to suspend Thomas. A WNBA spokesperson told SBJ the report was “absolutely false.” Thomas was ultimately suspended one game and assessed a Flagrant 2 penalty while getting fined $1,000 for “recklessly making contact with her fist to the throat area.” According to the report, Engelbert originally thought no foul called on the play originally made a suspension after the fact too steep...

WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert was not planning to suspend Alyssa Thomas for burying a fist into Caitlin Clark’s throat three weeks ago until NBA Commissioner Adam Silver implored her to reverse course and issue the discipline, multiple sources told SBJ Tuesday. Engelbert subsequently suspended Thomas for one game and ordered a Flagrant 2 penalty that carried a $1,000 fine. While a WNBA spokesperson said Wednesday it was “absolutely false’’ that Engelbert did not originally plan to suspend Thomas, sources believe the fact Silver needed to persuade Engelbert is another sign she is likely in her final season as commissioner. League...

The criticism of WNBA officiating has now reached Capitol Hill. Just days after Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark publicly called on the league to do a better job protecting its players, a group of Republican lawmakers is demanding answers from WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert. In a letter led by Rep. August Pfluger, chairman of the Republican Study Committee, and co-signed by a dozen members of Congress — including lawmakers from Indiana — the group argued that the WNBA has failed to adequately protect its biggest star from repeated unnecessary physical play. "Caitlin Clark is transforming women's sports," the letter began....

The on-court standoff between Sophie Cunningham and DeWanna Bonner became the highlight of the Indiana Fever's 86-77 victory over the Phoenix Mercury over a week ago. The heated moment went viral overnight as an instant hit. Naturally, fans began speculating about what sparked the exchange. Cunningham finally put those theories to rest, revealing that it was simply a lighthearted attempt to get under Bonner's skin. Nothing more, nothing less. Cunningham stepped into an enforcer-type role with the Fever as soon as Caitlin Clark arrived in Indiana. Against her former team, Sophie saw an opportunity to need one of her old...

Former Philadelphia 76ers orthopedic consultant Dr. Nicholas DiNubile sent a stark warning to the WNBA about the fate of superstar Caitlin Clark. Clark is currently out with a back injury, and concerns about her physical wellbeing have surged into a national controversy over the last week after she was punched in the throat by an opposing player in her last game, and referees didn't call a foul. Clark has faced a history of controversial contact since coming into the league in 2024. DiNubile admits he is troubled by what he has seen. "The type of contact and the amount of...