Sophie Cunningham didn’t hold back during her exit interview.
The Indiana Fever guard called out WNBA leadership from top to bottom, saying she’s “just tired of our league” and demanding accountability across the board. Her comments came during Wednesday’s exit interviews, two days after she’d already fired shots at commissioner Cathy Engelbert on Instagram.
“I’m just tired of our league,” Cunningham said. “Our leadership from top to bottom needs to be held accountable. I think there are a lot of people in position of power in the WNBA who, they might be really great business people, but they don’t know sh*t about basketball.”
Sophie Cunningham: “I’m just tired of our league… Our leadership from top to bottom needs to be held accountable… I think there are a lot of people in position of power in the WNBA who, they might be really great business people, but they don’t know shit about basketball.”
— Alexa Philippou (@alexaphilippou) October 2, 2025
Cunningham’s frustration builds on what’s become a full-scale player revolt against league leadership. Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier sparked it Tuesday with a prepared statement attacking Engelbert and the league office, revealing private conversations where the commissioner allegedly told her that Caitlin Clark should be “grateful” for making $16 million off the court because “without the platform that the WNBA gives her, she wouldn’t make anything.”
That prompted Cunningham to respond on Instagram before her team’s elimination game, calling Engelbert “the most delusional leader our league has seen” and adding that “people only know Cathy because of C.”
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The pile-on hasn’t stopped. ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith called for Engelbert to resign. NFL Network reporter and former WNBA All-Star Stacey Dales shared that she hosted a league event in Toronto at her own expense and never heard from Engelbert or anyone in the league office afterward. Scott Van Pelt dedicated his “One Big Thing” segment to the controversy, pointing out that Elena Delle Donne, a former MVP and seven-time All-Star, never received a call from Engelbert after retiring.
Sports Business Journal reported Tuesday that Engelbert is likely to exit the league after completing the current CBA negotiations. A source told SBJ that “she hasn’t connected; she’s not a relationship builder, which you have to be in that job with the teams, with the players.”
Cunningham’s criticism extends beyond just Engelbert. By saying leadership needs accountability “from top to bottom,” she’s not limiting her frustration to the commissioner’s office. She’s questioning whether people running the league understand basketball at all.
The WNBA’s current CBA expires at the end of this month, meaning players and ownership are about to enter negotiations. Collier, as a vice president of the WNBPA and co-founder of Unrivaled, has unique leverage in those talks. Collier helped build an alternative league that’s already secured significant investment, which gives her actual leverage in these talks.
Cunningham backed up Collier’s criticisms without hesitation. When asked about the Lynx star’s statement, she said she and other players support everything Collier said. She added that she’s “not really a fan of leadership in the W” and feels like “they are failing us, definitely failing us as players.”
More Cunningham: “Not really a fan of leadership in the W. I feel like they are failing us, definitely failing us as players. Everything Napheesa said, we back her.”
— Scott Agness (@ScottAgness) October 2, 2025
The league responded to Collier with a bland statement from Engelbert, saying she was “disheartened” by how Collier characterized their conversations, but remained committed to the work. Notably, she didn’t deny making the comments about Clark.
What started as Collier airing grievances about officiating and league accountability has turned into a referendum on whether Engelbert can survive with players openly calling for her removal. When even ESPN’s biggest personality is saying you should resign, and former players are sharing stories about being ignored, and current stars are using their exit interviews to torch leadership, the pressure becomes unsustainable.
Cunningham made clear this isn’t about one person or one decision. It’s about a fundamental disconnect between the people running the league and the players who make it work.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.