Washington Examiner columnist Joe Concha torched the New York Times’s sports department over its “irresponsible” column calling for the Indiana Fever to move on from guard Sophie Cunningham.
“This columnist, her name is Candace Buckner, of the Athletic and the New York Times, says that she needs to go? She’s too combustible for the team? Sophie Cunningham is one of the reasons why the Indiana Fever sell out every game everywhere they go,” Concha said Thursday on Fox & Friends First.
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The column, headlined, “Fever should part with Sophie Cunningham. She’s too turbulent to be paired with Caitlin Clark,” describes the force Cunningham has brought to the team, seemingly leaving a wreck of chaos for the WNBA with her “circus” of supporters.
“So if the Fever ever want to go back to being a basketball team again and follow the lead of rivals openly clashing with the forces trying to hijack their league, then Cunningham has to go,” Buckner wrote in the column.
“Cunningham is too combustible, her takes too turbulent to be paired with Caitlin Clark,” Buckner continued. “On the same team, it’s just too much.”
Cunningham, who has played eight WNBA seasons, stirred controversy when she discussed transgender participation in women’s sports during a July 21 ESPN profile.
“I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans,” Cunningham said in the ESPN profile. “And I’m like, ‘I never once said that.’ I think that I am here to extend love. But I also think with that love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men.”
Cunningham faced criticism for her comments, some saying she’s anti-trans. However, her remarks also garnered support for the basketball star and women’s sports.
Protesters both supporting and opposing Cunningham gathered for the Fever’s game against the Seattle Storm on July 28. Two teenage girls with courtside seats brought signs to support Cunningham.
“Thank you Sophie for speaking up for girls,” the sign read.
On Aug. 27, former NBA player Royce White showed up to a Fever game sporting a blonde wig as part of his and former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom’s campaign to enter the 2027 WNBA draft as biological males.
The move came after Freedom was ejected from a Fever game on Aug. 22 for wearing a shirt that read “woman, noun, adult human female.” Freedom also announced his intention to compete in the WNBA just weeks before, on Aug. 7.
Buckner highlighted these instances in her column.
“By far, this is the most irresponsible, and quite frankly, stupid column of the year,” Concha said.
Concha said Cunningham and Fever guard Caitlin Clark drive so much growth for the WNBA that they make up 71% of WNBA jersey sales.
The statistic was shared in June by sports satire page The Leagues on X. That figure has not been confirmed by the WNBA or Fanatics, an online retail company partnered with major sports leagues.
“The formula is working,” Concha said.
Concha argued Cunningham’s spot on the team is critical for the WNBA because she protects Clark on the court. Clark drives a lot of traffic for the WNBA but frequently encounters heavy physical play.
Concha said Cunningham is “there to protect the star” and that if Clark ever leaves the league, players should expect to see less money.
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“These players that have such a problem with Cailtin Clark suddenly will become irrelevant once again, and not make the money they’re making, and the arenas will be half empty like they used to be,” Concha said.
Indiana made the playoffs but was eliminated on Oct. 1 by the Las Vegas Aces.
