Everyone is watching womens’s sports, including NFL players like A.J. Dillion of the Philadelphia Eagles.
Dillon revealed why Sophie Cunningham of the Indiana Fever is his new favorite WNBA player after she stood up for Fever superstar Caitlin Clark.
Dillon, a veteran running back who spent his first four seasons with the Green Bay Packers, signed with the Eagles in the off-season. He has 2,428 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns in his NFL career.
Cunningham is in her first season with the Fever after playing her first six seasons with the Phoenix Mercury. She is averaging 7.6 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game over about 22 minutes in her 191-game WNBA career.
When Did A.J. Dillon Become A Fan of Sophie Cunningham?
Clark was poked in the eye by Jacy Sheldon of the Connecticut Sun last week, and Cunningham came to her aid later in the game. She picked up a flagrant foul and ejection for tackling Sheldon and sparking a melee in the fourth quarter of Indiana’s 88-71 win in the WNBA Commissioner Cup.
Dillon saw the highlights of Cunningham protecting Clark, the face of the league and one of the faces of professional basketball. He became a fan of Cunningham’s on the spot.
“Caitlin Clarkâs obviously the best player on that team, arguably the best player in the WNBA, if not the best,” Dillon told FOX News. “Think about it like the quarterback. Thatâs our quarterback, weâre gonna make sure sheâs protected.
“If somebody pushes Jalen Hurts, everybodyâs gonna be in there. I respected that, being there for the team.”
Dillon confirmed on X (formerly Twitter) that he purchased Cunningham’s jersey in a sign of his respect and called her “my new favorite player.”
“Iâm a fan,” Dillon said. “I like that approach to the game, and just being a tough player for the team, not letting anybody push your teammates around. I like that.”
What Other Athletes Are A Fan of Sophie Cunningham?
Cunningham is a WNBA veteran that is eighth on the Fever in points per game (5.2) and fifth in rebounds per game and hasn’t yet started for Indiana — she’s only played nine of the team’s 14 games.
So it is only because of her defense of Clark that is making Cunningham a household name. Her social-media following has blown up in the aftermath, with her TikTok following has ballooning to 1.4 million.
She is approaching one million followers on Instagram as well.
Though Cunningham’s hard foul attracted naysayers — a petition to ban her from the WNBA was posted, though it is currently languishing with only a few-hundred signees — she also earned praise for her hard foul from basketball legend and Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon.
“I think teammates should step in and defend [Clark],” Hammon said according to The Mirror US.
Earning Hammon’s praise must come with affirmation, but it’s all in a days’ work for Cunningham, who has also called out the league for failing to protect superstars like Clark.
“At the end of the day, I’m going to protect my teammates,” Cunningham told reporters after the Fever lost to the Golden State Valkyries on June 19. That’s what I do.”
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