Sophie Cunningham Omits Indiana Fever Amid WNBA Ownership Praise
Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham made waves when she spoke about WNBA ownership during a February 3 episode of her Show Me Something podcast.
When Cunningham was asked by her co-host, West Wilson, whether WNBA owners side more with the players or with WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert, she said, "So, I think, what it seems like — and I don't know this for 100% fact — but from my perspective, it seems like, that half of our owners are player-first, and really wanting to invest. And the other half are more league-side.
"But it's weird, because they do want to invest. But you just don't have owners who are willing to spend, I guess," Cunningham continued.
Wilson then asked whether there's any owner in the WNBA who puts the most into their team, and she said, "Yeah. I feel like at the front line, owners who are most involved, I would say right now, would be New York, Seattle, and Phoenix. They have the funds... And they're awesome. Their ownerships are completely awesome; they're very player-first. They know that maybe you're gonna lose a little money on the front end, but you'll get it back if you invest."
She then added, "If you give these players what they want, you're gonna get all the best players. Therefore, you're gonna win. Therefore, your ticket sales are gonna be up. Everything is gonna be up. But it all comes back down to revenue share."
Why Sophie Cunningham Not Mentioning Fever Ownership Makes Sense
The fact that Cunningham didn't include the Fever's ownership group of Pacers Sports & Entertainment (PS&E), which is led by Herb Simon, in this discussion is raising eyebrows among some. But the bottom line is that PS&E hasn't earned Cunningham's praise to this point.
Hearing Cunningham noting the Liberty's ownership (Clara Wu Tsai and her husband, Joe Tsai) is no surprise, as they're widely known for being top-tier owners in the WNBA.
Sophie said New York, Seattle and Phoenix owners are player friendly are willing to spend money. 👀
— Mongo Slade (@MongoSlade84) February 4, 2026
And her listing the Mercury ownership, led by Mat Ishbia, and the Storm ownership of Force 10 Hoops LLC, which is led by Dawn Trudeau, Lisa Brummel, and Ginny Gilder, along with other notable former athletes like Sue Bird, also makes a lot of sense, as these two franchises have great reputations.
Indiana's commitment to cultivating a winning roster was apparent last year, and they can continue to show that commitment if and when the WNBA free agency period begins this year.
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Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the Indiana Fever and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.
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