The WNBA announced three new expansion teams and their cities on Monday as they will expand to 18 teams by 2030. They include Cleveland, Detroit, and Philadelphia.
While the news of the league latest growth bring some excitement, not everyone is pleased with the plan. Some players, staff, media, and fans are concerned about the league growing more disparity from the top of the league to the bottom. It is often brought up that the league should look into roster expansion over team expansion.
WNBA rosters are capped at 12 players and some teams have less as they are dealing with injuries.
One of the players that shared their thoughts and even some displeasure is Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham.
“I don’t know how excited people are to be going to Detroit or [Cleveland],” Cunningham said.
Cunningham is averaging 5.6 points on 34 percent shooting with 4.1 rebounds per game in her first year with the Fever. She spent her first five WNBA seasons with the Phoenix Mercury.
Shortly after the video dropped, the internet all had shared their thought not just on the WNBA news but Cunningham’s specific comments.
Even official city accounts like Cleveland’s and Detroit’s had something to say.
Anyways, the Golden State Valkyries are the latest expansion team and are off to a strong start. A team in Toronto, Canada and Portland, Oregon take the court next season in 2026. The three just announced begin in 2028 with Cleveland, 2029 with Detroit, and Philadelphia will take the court in 2030.
Time will tell if these cities show up for their future WNBA franchises but based on the response by hoop fans on Twitter, support looks to be pretty strong.
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