Sophie Cunningham’s rapid rise from WNBA role player to one of the most talked-about personalities in American sport has now taken an unexpected political turn, with former ESPN writer and bestselling author Chuck Klosterman predicting she could one day appear on a presidential ticket.
Cunningham has become a familiar figure well beyond the Indiana Fever, helped by her podcast, analyst work for USA Network, viral on-court moments and a surprise appearance at a UFC event in Las Vegas.
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Her growing profile has made her a regular subject of online conversation, but Klosterman pushed that attention into a very different space during an appearance on The Bill Simmons Podcast.
“Sophie Cunningham… I’m going to say [by] 2050, is going to be Vice President of the United States,” Klosterman said.
“I don’t know what party she’ll be in, I don’t know anything about her political views. But she will be the vice-presidential candidate, at least the candidate.”
The prediction was deliberately speculative, but Klosterman insisted there is something about Cunningham’s public presence that makes the idea feel plausible to him.
“I don’t know what it is,” Klosterman added. “It’s something about the fact that she wears those sleeves on the court, something about the way she triggers in-bound plays at the end of games, makes me think she will be someone’s ideal vice president.
“You know, she has a damn likable personality.”
Cunningham’s viral rise fuels speculation
Cunningham’s popularity has accelerated in recent months, particularly after a viral moment in which she pointed dramatically at Phoenix Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner during a tense game in Indianapolis.
The clip spread quickly across social media and even reached the White House’s official X account, which posted a video cutting from Cunningham explaining the technical foul to President Donald Trump pointing at the camera and giving a thumbs-up.
Cunningham said she wasn’t especially surprised by the post.
“I think everyone around the world is posting it,” Cunningham told reporters.
“Every company has done it. They’re just the one to also get on board, and so I didn’t really think twice about it. I think they’re just another group who is posting about it.”
Her surprise cameo as a UFC ring girl, alongside UFC president Dana White, added another layer to the attention around her.
White is one of Trump’s most visible supporters, and Cunningham has previously been nicknamed “MAGA Barbie” by some fans online.
Cunningham addresses political assumptions
Cunningham has pushed back against attempts to define her politics through assumptions about her background.
“I’m clearly white and from Missouri, and so I think there was a lot of assumption there,” Cunningham said. “All I have to say is I really am right in the middle, and I think a lot of America is like that.
“In our culture today you have to choose and you have to be an extremist, and that’s just not me. So, I agree with things on both sides; I disagree with things on both sides.”
That answer helps explain why Klosterman’s prediction gained attention. Cunningham has become famous enough for people to project an entire future onto her, yet undefined enough politically for both curiosity and speculation to grow.
A vice-presidential run remains an outlandish long-term prediction, not a career plan. Cunningham is still an active WNBA player, and nothing suggests she is preparing for politics.
Still, the fact that the conversation exists at all shows how far her influence has traveled. Cunningham’s no longer just creating viral basketball moments, she’s become a mainstream personality people are trying to imagine in places far beyond the court.