Sydney Colson, a former Indiana Fever player, urged white WNBA players to remain silent on transgender athlete issues during an episode of her podcast "Unsupervised with Syd & TP." Colson criticized players who express harmful opinions about trans athletes, telling them to “shut the f–k up” and emphasizing that such views are not respected. Her comments came in response to a July ESPN interview where Fever player Sophie Cunningham expressed concerns over biological males participating in women’s sports. Colson also addressed recent statements by Indiana’s general manager Amber Cox defending the team's fan base, which has been accused of racism, suggesting that players' experiences with discrimination are being dismissed as unfounded.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-10,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Sydney Colson, a former WNBA player who played for the Indiana Fever, criticized white players on her podcast "Unsupervised with Syd & TP" in late 2023. She urged white colleagues to "shut the f--- up" if they remain silent or express harmful views regarding transgender athletes competing in women's sports. Colson specifically targeted former teammate Sophie Cunningham, who has spoken out on these issues, suggesting that such silence and negativity from players undermines solidarity within the league. The comments reflect broader tensions within the WNBA about inclusivity and player responsibilities toward team cohesion amid debates over biological sex classifications in competitive sports.
Written for “Sydney Colson Controversy” on 2026-10-10,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.65, but 3 quote(s) could not be found in the article and the other 1 are attributed speech rather than the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 69683: no verified evidence · logged 2026-10-10
Former Fever guard Sydney Colson addressed the importance of solidarity among WNBA players, including how teammates respond to various issues confronting the league in 2026.
asserted
teammates → address → 2026
Colson made some notable remarks during her most recent episode of “Unsupervised with Syd & TP,” a podcast she hosts alongside fellow former WNBA player Theresa Plaisance.
asserted
she → make → Plaisance
While Colson did not mention Indiana’s Sophie Cunningham by name, the discussion touched on an issue her former Fever teammate previously addressed.
asserted
teammate → mention → issue
“For the white players in the league, when you don’t say s–t, and even worse, when you say things that are harmful, talking about the trans s–t, nobody respects you,” Colson said.
asserted
Colson → say → you
Nobody wants to hear your opinion.
asserted
Nobody → want → opinion
Freedom of speech, so you can say it, but just know people are trying to get by when they’re dealing with you.”
asserted
they → say → you
Colson’s broader comments focused on the responsibility players have to support teammates, particularly when dealing with issues of discrimination, which have dominated online discussions about the league for the past few years.
asserted
which → focus → years
“Listen, if you never speak up about a damn thing when you know it’s impacting the people you claim to love and care about,” Colson said, “you ought to be ashamed to act like you’re cool with people, to act like you care about sisterhood, all of these things.”
uncertain
you → listen → things
Cunningham, who played alongside Colson in Indiana during the 2025 season, previously shared her position on transgender participation in women’s sports during a July interview with ESPN.
asserted
who → play → ESPN
“I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men,” Cunningham said at the time.
asserted
Cunningham → want → time
Colson also addressed comments made by Fever general manager Amber Cox, who defended the team’s polarizing fan base, which has faced allegations of racism from players and fans, during an end-of-season press conference Saturday.
asserted
which → address → conference
“The attacks on our fanbase have no basis in reality, and they need to stop,” Cox said.
asserted
Cox → have → reality
Colson disagreed with that assessment, highlighting concerns raised by players about their experiences with fans in Indiana.
asserted
Colson → disagree → Indiana
“But what I painted for you was an environment of a culture that’s continuing and not being addressed,” Colson said.
asserted
Colson → paint → culture
“And people are being told that things are not ‘based in reality,’ even though players are documented and on record saying what they’ve experienced.
asserted
they → tell → what
So now, it’s a slap in the face to black players who are in the organization right now, who have been in it, who are possibly going to have to be in it.
uncertain
who → ’ → it
Colson also clarified on multiple occasions that she was not accusing every Fever fan of discriminatory behavior, but questioned whether the organization was doing enough to address incidents involving its fans.
asserted
organization → clarify → fans
“We didn’t say that these individual people are racist, but this environment is not discouraging people from showing up and being hateful, racist, homophobic, sexist, any of those things,” she continued.
asserted
she → say → things
“It’s a problem, and it’s not new.”
asserted
it → ’ → ?
Colson tore her ACL last August and was not rostered this season.
asserted
Colson → tear → ACL
The Aporia
