Sophie Cunningham of the Indiana Fever has hinted that a leadership change at the top of the WNBA could be coming after this season.
The veteran guard recently suggested commissioner Cathy Engelbert’s position might become available at year’s end. Cunningham said the league needs someone bold and confident who prioritizes the players. She acknowledged Engelbert has done good things but added that the direction the league is heading calls for a different kind of leader.
“So I do feel like, as a whole, that could be a position that’s maybe open at the end of the year, but that’s not my call,” Cunningham told USA TODAY. “With where our league is trying to go, I feel like you just want someone who also wants that.”
Her comments arrive as Engelbert faces mounting scrutiny over the league’s handling of several controversies. On Thursday, the commissioner pushed back against critics, blaming “haters” for using the WNBA to sow divisiveness.
Speaking before the Fever’s game in Dallas, Engelbert said outsiders who have never watched or covered the league are turning it into a political football. She pointed to ongoing protests outside arenas that intensified after Cunningham publicly supported barring transgender athletes from women’s sports.
“There’s always going to be haters out there, and we denounce it,” Engelbert said, via ESPN. “But that’s what happens when you have made it as a legitimate sports media and entertainment product.”
The debate escalated further when former NBA players Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White declared themselves eligible for the WNBA draft, identifying as women.
The league’s collective bargaining agreement states only women may play but offers no additional definition of eligibility. Engelbert has indicated the subject remains under discussion with team executives.
