Sophie Cunningham Called Out by Nancy Lieberman for Dissing WNBA Expansion Teams

Women's basketball legend Nancy Lieberman called out Sophie Cunningham after the Indiana Fever guard spoke dismissively of two cities that were recently announced as WNBA expansion destinations.

Lieberman told TMZ Sports that Cunningham "might wanna talk" to LeBron James and Grant Hill about what it's like to play in Cleveland or Detroit, respectively.

"I don't know if it's cities that she maybe has frequented," Lieberman said. "But if she were there, she would understand the fandom and the support and how loyal those cities are to their fanbase."

Cunningham had a candid reaction the day the WNBA confirmed it's returning to Cleveland and Detroit along with breaking into the Philadelphia market for the first time. She suggested the league should've chosen cities that are perceived to be more attractive.

"I'm not so sure what the thought process is there, but at the end of the day, you want to make sure that you're not expanding our league too fast," she told reporters. "I think that that's also another thing. It's kind of a hard decision-making situation. But man, I don't know how excited people are to be going to Detroit or [Cleveland]."

Cunningham clarified her stance Thursday, explaining to Tony East of The Next that she's aware of the WNBA's history in Detroit and Cleveland. She added that "would never speak down upon middle-class, blue-collar working people." Part of her reaction stemmed from the fact she'd like to see her league break into markets that don't have NBA teams.

Neither Detroit nor Cleveland took her initial remarks lying down and responded on social media:

Lieberman came to the Motor City's defense as someone who both played and coached there. The Hall of Famer was the Detroit Shock's head coach from 1998-2000 and then made one appearance for the team in 2008.

In general, Cunningham might be wise to moderate her remarks about the destinations that are due to join the WNBA. Thanks to the expansion draft, she might wind up playing in Cleveland or Detroit, much to her chagrin.