Indeed, the state's NBA team, the Memphis Grizzlies, does not play in Nashville, which is where the Tennessee Summitt would be stationed if sanctioned by the WNBA. The WNBA looks to have prioritized cities with existing NBA teams first in this new wave, as did recent expansion sites like Golden State, Toronto and Portland.

Women's basketball legend Nancy Lieberman called out Sophie Cunningham after the Indiana Fever guard spoke dismissively of two cities recently announced as WNBA expansion destinations.

The social media accounts for each city posted responses to Cunningham, who said Tuesday she wasn’t sure “how excited people are to be going to Detroit or (Cleveland).”