If it hasn't become abundantly clear by now, Sophie Cunningham isn't exactly the type of woman to keep quiet when something crosses the line. A recent incident involving teenage girls at a game in Seattle clearly hit a nerve with the WNBA star.
On Tuesday night, a couple of young girls showed up courtside at the Climate Pledge Arena holding handmade signs thanking the Indiana Fever guard for “speaking up for girls.”
They were heading into the lion's den out there in Seattle. Fans booed Cunningham relentlessly, while an "adult man" (both terms in that phrase are debatable) confronted them, telling security repeatedly to come "take out the trash."
Footage obtained by @FoxNews shows the young Sophie Cunningham fans also face a confrontation with a grown man and a woman with him. The man shouted "take the trash out" to arena staff, in reference to the girls and the other supporters with them. https://t.co/0jaSjUmMbn pic.twitter.com/MjwfUyHmb4
— Jackson Thompson (@JackThompsonFOX) July 29, 2026
As RedState Sports Reporter Jerry Wilson noted, a Storm co-owner later identified as Celeste Keaton berated the teenage girls as “f***ing insane” for daring to hold up a sign in support of Cunningham and girls in general.
“I’ve never been yelled at like that,” one of the girls told Brandi Kruse on the Undivided podcast.
“I’ve had people hate on me on the internet, but it doesn’t really affect me as much, because it’s people online. But that just caught me by surprise because I thought she was going to be nice, and she started screaming at us, and cussing at us.”
The team had to issue an apology for Keaton's behavior.
"We are aware one of our co-owners made comments to two fans in attendance at last night's game. We apologize that this happened," the statement read. "Everyone who attends a Storm game deserves to feel welcome, and we remain committed to creating an inclusive environment where every fan is treated with respect."
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The Storm, it should be pointed out, are far and away the worst team in the WNBA. The worst team in a league that, in general, doesn't exactly excel at the sport of basketball.
And they're focused on teenage girls who happen to have paid attention in biology class. Priorities.
Last night, @seattlestorm co-owner Celeste Keaton cursed out two teen girls for wearing @xx_xyathletics shirts, calling them "f*cking insane." One of them was left in tears. I tried to get security involved and was told I should email the front office. pic.twitter.com/Qi8TcfRtYB
— Brandi Kruse (@BrandiKruse) July 29, 2026
Cunningham, for her part, wasted little time responding to the situation once she got wind of what happened, praising the girls for standing up for what they believe, promising to reach out with gifts, and lambasting Keaton.
"I truly believe there is a safe space and love for EVERYBODY. Biological girls, biological boys, trans women, and trans men. Everyone is welcome at my table! You can disagree and still be kind," she said, reiterating the initial stance that somehow became controversial in the Emerald City.
"Bravo to those girls for standing up for what they believe. You’ll be hearing from me soon💕 yay for gifts," added Cunningham. "Truly embarrassing of the co-owner. Unfortunately shows the type of leader she is."
Not only did she torch the Storm on the court (3-for-4 from downtown), but now she's lighting up ownership off it.
I truly believe there is a safe space and love for EVERYBODY. Biological girls, biological boys, trans women, and trans men. Everyone is welcome at my table! You can disagree and still be kind.
— Sophie Cunningham (@sophaller) July 30, 2026
Bravo to those girls for standing up for what they believe. You’ll be hearing from… https://t.co/gIVWhEHi3Q
Sophie initially drew the ire of unhinged liberals with roughly zero feet firmly planted here on planet Earth by offering up the following benign statement: "I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn't have to go against biological men."
Like she said, bravo to the girls who back that idea.
Let's hope there are more fans out there brave enough to support Cunningham and thank her for protecting women and girls. The WNBA could use a little reminder of what the 'W' stands for.
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