Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham, who has been at the center of controversy this season for her comments on transgender athletes, implied in a recent interview that the league would benefit from a new commissioner instead of keeping Cathy Engelbert.
"You do have to have a person in power who is bold, who is confident, who wants the best for the players and not maybe for themselves all the time," Cunningham told USA Today. "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."
Even as the WNBA has grown, Engelbert, in her seventh season as commissioner, has been the subject of criticism from players. Cunningham said Engelbert has "done a lot of good things," but said the WNBA needs a commissioner who supports players being "trailblazers of what women's leagues can look like."
"With where our league is trying to go, I feel like you just want someone who also wants that," Cunningham said. "That's just a hard position to be in, in her shoes, us as players -- we always want more, more, more because we see how good it can be."
Cunningham's comments sparked controversy
Cunningham has only started three games for Indiana this season, but her popularity has skyrocketed for non-basketball reasons. First, Cunningham became a viral meme when she fiercely pointed her finger at the Phoenix Mercury's DeWanna Bonner during an on-court dispute in June.
The following month, Cunningham voiced support for barring transgender women from participating in women's sports. Her public stance sparked rallies and protests from both sides of the issue, as well as multiple discussions in the WNBA community, which is widely known for its support of the LGBTQ+ community. Since then, multiple rallies have been organized by supporters of Cunningham's beliefs before Fever games.
WNBA denounced 'bad-faith' actors amid fight over trans participation. Now it needs to lead the conversation Lindsay Gibbs
These rallies and protests led Engelbert to call for league-wide discussions on the WNBA's policies on transgender athletes.
Cunningham, meanwhile, has said she has not organized any of the rallies and earlier this month said she wished the focus would just return to basketball. However, she told USA Today that she can use her platform to discuss both on- and off-court topics.
"People are like, 'You have a platform. Use it,' and then once you use it, it's like, 'Go back to playing basketball.' I think the reason why I stated that is because you go into media, and it's not anything even about basketball. I think I could do both," Cunningham said. "Ask me about what's going on and what I said. And also ask me how great my teammates are doing, how great our team is doing, how great the league is doing.
"We can be a great example of how to do both."
Engelbert's future as commissioner is unclear
There is no denying the league has grown exponentially since Engelbert took the job in 2019, but Cunningham is not the only player to publicly question whether or not she is the right person for the job moving forward.
The collective bargaining agreement negotiations from this past offseason were quite chippy. Last September, Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier blasted Engelbert, saying the WNBA has "the worst leadership in the world." Both sides came to an agreement and a lockout was avoided, but the relationship between WNBA players and Engelbert remains contentious.
Cathy Engelbert helped the WNBA capitalize on growth, but now her relationship with players is holding it back Lindsay Gibbs
During the 2026 WNBA All-Star weekend in Chicago, multiple players spoke about how they don't have personal relationships with Engelbert -- including four-time MVP A'ja Wilson, who said their only relationship is when the commissioner hands her awards.
"I think when it comes to leadership, I'm always big on bonds," Wilson said. "Always big on connection on a deeper level and I think that's what we all try to look for when it comes to a leader."
Engelbert reports directly to NBA commissioner Adam Silver, who in July said she "continues to do a strong job building that league," but was noncommittal when he added there are "ongoing discussions" about her future as commissioner. Engelbert's contract expires after the 2026 season.
Add CBS Sports on Google Join the Conversation comments
