Sophie Cunningham boyfriend rumors spiral after cozy bikini snap with former staffer at her old WNBA team

WNBA star Sophie Cunningham has seen boyfriend rumors spiral on social media after a picture of her cozying up to a man on a boat during her 30th birthday celebrations.

Cunningham celebrated her milestone birthday on August 16 but has taken the opportunity of some time off during the FIBA World Cup break to continue celebrating.

She enjoyed a boat trip back home in Missouri on the Lake of the Ozarks with her close friends, sharing pictures of herself on her Instagram page. 

One photo in particular that surfaced online from the trip raised eyebrows as she was shown in a bikini snuggling up to a man in a black baseball cap.

While Cunningham has been tight-lipped about her dating life and did not appear to post the images on her own profiles, many on social media jumped to the assumption that the photo reflected the hard-launch of a new lover. 

And the man was soon identified online as Frank Adams, a former staffer on her old WNBA team, the Phoenix Mercury, where he was an assistant athletic trainer until 2025.

He is now head athletic trainer at Grand Canyon University men’s basketball team, where Cunningham was reportedly noticed at some games earlier this year.

Back in February, as a guest on the ‘Like a Farmer’ podcast, Cunningham was candid about her love life.  

‘People don’t come up to me. I don’t really go on dates,’ she said. ‘I think I just maybe give off, like, an intimidating vibe.’

‘I think that’s maybe the problem. Like, I get along with the guys way more than I get along with the girls.’

And over the weekend, Cunningham faced another awkward podcast moment as Colin Cowherd referred to her as the WNBA’s ‘sex symbol’ in a conversation.  

‘You are kind of viewed a little bit as the league’s … ummm,’ Cowherd, 62, said, as he searched for the best way to phrase his question.

‘Just say it,’ Cunningham replied. ‘I don’t care.’

‘Sex symbol,’ he responded, before asking if that was a fair assessment. 

‘That is way better,’ said Cunningham. ‘I thought you were gonna go somewhere completely different.’

Earlier this year Cunningham said she was still single and very rarely went on dates

Cunningham has previously shared her theory she is ‘intimidating’ to men

Cowherd later praised Cunningham’s physical play and reluctance to back down from anyone – as she has often served as an on-court protector for Indiana star Caitlin Clark – along with her style.

‘You’re tough. You’ll fight anybody. You’ll taunt anybody,’ Cowherd said. ‘But you’ll make sure, coming into the arena, ‘I look good, and I want you to know…”

‘For some reason, our society, if you play basketball, you can’t dress that way, or you can’t be girly,’ Cunningham replied. 

‘No one’s ever said it, but it’s like, they kind of feel that you can’t be both. Screw all that. Yes, you can. You can be girly, and you can go out and kick someone’s ass.’