The Martin Luther King Jr. Center Approaches WNBA After Sophie Cunningham's Comments on Online Hate

The Martin Luther King Jr. Center has weighed in on WNBA criticism after Sophie Cunningham’s comments reframed online hate as an individual mental-toughness issue. Cunningham, an Indiana Fever guard, was responding at a practice media availability ahead of Indiana’s matchup with Las Vegas, following Alyssa Thomas’ one-game suspension for contact with Caitlin Clark’s throat during a June 24 game. Thomas later went public about receiving death threats and racial slurs afterward. Cunningham argued that the league could issue statements but that mental toughness determines how people handle abuse. The MLK Center criticized this framing in a direct post to the WNBA, saying racist and homophobic attacks are not “outside noise” and that the league should address the problem intentionally. The comments also drew reaction from NBC Sports analyst Natalie Esquire.