There’s hardly a single time when Sophie Cunningham lets any discussion slide that involves WNBA players’ comparison with NBA players.

The Indiana Fever guard had an on-point response when her podcast co-host Drew Hanlen compared her shooting numbers with Luka Doncic's. Cunningham acknowledged the Los Angeles Lakers star's impressive production but quickly pointed out that their salaries make the comparison unfair.

During an episode of the No Hesitation podcast, Hanlen noted how many shots and free throws Doncic had attempted through his first nine games of the 2026-27 NBA season. He compared those numbers with Cunningham's totals across 43 games during the 2026 WNBA season.

Cunningham was quick to bring up the financial difference between the two players.

“And I also think you're missing a big one,” Cunningham said. “He also makes $50 million a year. I make 700,000 on my WNBA check. You should compare me more to Quentin Grimes. You know, we average around, eight to 10 points. I think that's it. My three point shooting is actually better than the both of them. And so we're going to compare, let's compare.”

Sophie Cunningham after Drew Hanlen told her Luka had better stats through 9 games than she did all of last season:

“He also makes $50M a year. I make $700K. You should compare me more to Quentin Grimes. We average around 8-10 points. My 3-point shooting is actually better than… pic.twitter.com/wufbEZZFkD

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) November 14, 2026

Article Continues Below

The comparison with Grimes was not entirely off. Cunningham averaged 7.9 points per game during the 2026 season, while the Lakers guard has averaged 8.0 points this NBA campaign.

Her point about salaries also reflects a significant gap between the leagues. Cunningham signed a one-year, $665,000 contract with Indiana in April, while Doncic is earning $49.5 million during the 2026-27 NBA season under his three-year, $165 million extension.

Cunningham also backed up her claim about three-point shooting. She converted 41.9% of her attempts from beyond the arc in 2026, compared with Doncic's 40.8% and Grimes' 24.2% this season.