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Sophie Cunningham is the latest person to weigh in on the Caitlin Clark/WNBA controversy.
Last week, Clark took a dirty, cheap shot from Phoenix Mercury player Alyssa Thomas.
🔥Hold on…A closer look at the dirty play of Alyssa Thomas last night with a new angle — Wait for freeze + zoom on each.
– Knee to the groin
– Hugs her under the arms
– Fist to the neck
– Attempt to stomp on her (she moved)Why do @WNBA gamers hate Caitlin Clark so much? 🤯 pic.twitter.com/83JZSChdEu
— HeroOfTheDay (@Hero_OfThe_Day) 25 June 2026
The umpires did not initially call Thomas a foul, leading to public outcry from fans. Former NFL QB Boomer Esiason said Clark should leave the WNBA and play overseas because she is being treated poorly by the league.
“If I were Caitlin Clark, I would seriously consider playing overseas somewhere and getting the royal treatment … she’s a straight-up white basketball player. And she’s not treated with any kind of respect.”
“If I were Caitlin Clark, I’d seriously consider playing overseas somewhere and getting the royal treatment … she’s a straight-up white basketball player. And she’s not being treated with any kind of respect” – Boomer Esiason pic.twitter.com/zeFRdOMLVn
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) 25 June 2026
During a recent podcast appearance, Cunningham also blasted the WNBA and their referees for not protecting Clark.
“In real time last night, I didn’t see it happening,” Cunningham said. “None of our teams saw it happen, because I promise you, if we had seen it happen, we would have had (Clarks) back. Unfortunately, this type of crap happens every single game to (Clark) and the league and the refs do absolutely nothing about it.”
“You see the videos of literally kneeing and cheap shots (Clark) in the neck,” Cunningham continued. “If (Thomas) did that to any of our teammates, we’d be mad. But they’re definitely targeting (Clark), and the league and the umpires are doing nothing to protect her.”
WNBA player Sophie Cunningham calls out WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert by name, accusing the league of failing to protect Caitlin Clark. pic.twitter.com/68N8kBkgiu
— Daily Loud (@DailyLoud) 28 June 2026
