WNBA team bans Enes Kanter Freedom after explosive ccourtside clash with Natasha Cloud
The Chicago Sky have taken action and banned the former NBA player from returning to their arena.
Former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom , who has become one of the most controversial figures in the debate surrounding the WNBA ’s policies regarding transgender athletes, was removed from Wintrust Arena after an exchange with Chicago Sky star Natasha Cloud during Sunday’s game against the Indiana Fever.
Freedom was escorted out of the arena and, according to Sky owner Michael Alter , the former New York Knicks player will not be allowed to return “unless sometime in the future he is able to prove to us that he can abide by our rules without becoming a potential threat.”
Alter said Freedom’s presence at the game against the Indiana Fever appeared to be aimed at creating controversy and attracting attention.
“It was pretty clear to us that his purpose of coming here was trying to be provocative and just see how much attention he could get,” Alter told Front Office Sports, adding that he knew Kanter was going to attend the game but did not want to alert his players beforehand.
Freedom attended the game wearing a shirt that read: “WOMAN noun. adult human female” and said he was simply supporting Indiana player Sophie Cunningham , who had sparked debate after speaking about transgender athletes competing in women’s sports.
However, Alter said the incident went beyond the message on Freedom’s shirt and claimed that Kanter was the one who initiated the exchange with Cloud.
“They each confirmed that the dialogue between Cloud and Kanter started with Kanter,” Alter told FOS. “He began to chirp with her sometime in the third quarter. I would characterize it as trash-talking, nothing personal. Basketball-related, but enough to get her attention and to engage her, and in my opinion, to try to provoke her.”
“He portrays himself as this victimless person who did nothing, said nothing. Just wearing a T-shirt… We have five different security authorities that all agreed very quickly to throw him out because he made himself into a threat.”
The Sky owner added that Freedom attempted to portray himself as someone who “did nothing and said nothing,” but that five security teams quickly agreed he needed to be removed because they considered him a potential threat.
The controversy involving Freedom and the WNBA grew after he and former Houston Rockets first-round pick Royce White entered the league’s debate over transgender policies by declaring themselves women and seeking eligibility for the WNBA Draft .
According to multiple reports, the league is not considering their eligibility to participate, although Freedom claimed he has not received any official communication.
“I haven’t heard anything from the WNBA officials yet,” he told The Post’s Stefan Bondy. “Fake News!”
