Caitlin Clark has chosen to stay neutral on teammate Sophie Cunningham's comments on the transgender athlete debate.Following Fever’s loss to the Minnesota Lynx, the 24-year-old basketball player said that was not something that Fever would discuss in their locker room. She added that the sports leagues should handle the issue while her team remains focused on winning basketball games. Clark said:“It's for the leagues and governing bodies to work with their athletes to find solutions. My focus is on basketball. That’s what we talk about and how we can get wins and obviously we didn’t do that tonight. So, we need to find an area to improve in that way."Sophie Cunningham previously stated that transgender girls and women should be barred from female-only sports categories and locker rooms. Her comments received widespread backlash with netizens accusing her of transphobia.Continue reading for more details.More details on Sophie Cunningham's transphobic controversyIn an ESPN profile published in July 2026 Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham expressed her views on protecting young women in the locker room. She also emphasized that they should not have to go against biological men.She made her statement while stating that she has no hate towards transgender people and seeks to “extend love” alongside what she described as honesty.According to a report in The IX Sports, she said:“I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans. 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.”Rallies were organized on July 28 in support of Sophie Cunningham after she opposed the participation of trans athletes in female sports categories. The first reported gathering was held outside Climate Pledge Arena ahead of the Indiana Fever’s game against the Seattle Storm.The rally was organized by groups including Women Are Real, along with activist Amy E. Sousa and journalist Brandi Kruse under the banner With Love is Truth. Dozens of participants held signs thanking Sophie Cunningham. For example, “Thank you Sophie for speaking up for girls.” They displayed messages such as “I said what I said.”Indiana Fever v Minnesota Lynx - Source: GettyThey backed Washington state ballot initiatives to restrict transgender athletes in girls’ school sports. Neither Sophie Cunningham nor Caitlin Clark were made available to speak with media after the Fever’s game against the Seattle Storm.A report published in NBC News stated that a Fever public relations representative said in a statement:“Neither our organization nor Sophie had any knowledge of this demonstration and no contact with its organizers. Our only goal as a team, whether at home or away, is to win basketball games and make Fever fans for life, and we are united in that mission.”Cunningham said Friday in Portland that she was not concerned about rallies held against transgender participation in women's sports becoming a distraction for the Fever. She said:“I think everyone who knows me personally, they know that I’m full of love. I’m bubbly. I love the people around me. “I love basketball. I love inspiring the next generation and doing that in a positive light. And so that doesn’t even cross my mind. Doesn’t cross my teammates’ minds.”In addition to Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena, protests have also been held in Portland's Moda Center and Minneapolis's Target Center. The rally also drew counterprotesters including the LGBTQ+ activists who gathered in a nearby location.Signs and slogans such as “TRANS PEOPLE JUST WANT TO LIVE,” “Protect Trans Kids,” “My kid plays a trans-inclusive sport & everything is FINE,” and “NO HATE IN THE UNITED STATES” were displayed during the protests.