Former NBA center Enes Kanter Freedom was ejected from Sunday night’s Indiana Fever v Chicago Sky WNBA game after he was confronted by Sky guard Natasha Cloud late in the third quarter. Freedom was sitting along the baseline. He had on a black shirt that read “WOMAN.
Adult human female.” The Fever called for a time out after Cloud scored inside with 1:22 left in the third quarter. Cloud then did a chest bump with teammate Aicha Coulibaly before turning around and walking in Kanter’s direction. Cloud, 34, started yelling and pointing at Kanter, 34, as she approached him.
A standing Kanter held his arms out and took one step on the court as security and a handful of Sky players moved in between the two. Chicago coach Tyler Marsh said Cloud was concerned about being a distraction for the team. He spun around while holding his shirt out and encouraged the crowd to respond as he walked toward the front lobby.
He had a conversation with a group of police officers before departing Wintrust Arena. She did not speak with the media. The WNBA has been the subject of recent debates on whether transgender women – people assigned male at birth who transition to align with their gender identity – should be allowed to participate in the league.
There has never been such a player in the WNBA. Although the league’s collective bargaining agreement says the WNBA is restricted to women, it contains no more specific language about gender identity or sex assigned at birth. Fever guard Sophie Cunningham said in an ESPN profile published last month that she was opposed to transgender girls and women competing in girls’ and women’s sports.
Freedom and Royce White, another former NBA player, have declared themselves eligible for the WNBA draft, saying they identify as women. Asked if he had a message for Kanter, Marsh praised the league and its players. I think these players deserve that and have earned that.
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