WNBA Debate Over Men in Women's Sports

WNBA star Sophie Cunningham wants a strong commissioner. Fans support her call to protect women’s sports. The article "The Faulkner Focus" shows the growing debate, including a Seattle writer who quit over censorship.

WNBA player Natasha Cloud sent a message to transgender people on Sunday night.

Cloud posted that trans people belong, are loved, seen, and perfect as they are. She said they will always be protected by her.

WNBA says it does not know what it will face, says Enes Kanter Freedom as the league deals with the trans athlete issue.

The comment came after Cloud faced Enes Kanter Freedom during the Sky’s 113‑90 loss to the Indiana Fever at Wintrust Arena on Sunday. Freedom has been asking the WNBA a simple question: Can a man play in a women’s professional basketball league?

Cloud answered a question nobody asked.

Natasha Cloud said trans people belong after confronting Enes Kanter Freedom, but the WNBA still has not answered the real eligibility question. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

The fight is not about who can enter a WNBA arena. Freedom asks if a man may play in a women’s league. Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham made the same point, saying biological men should not compete in women’s sports.

The talk often shifts because defending men in women’s sports is harder than simply saying trans people belong.

Cloud was not the only one speaking this weekend.

The New York Liberty hosted the Fever at Barclays Center on Saturday, and the scoreboard showed messages welcoming transgender fans.

"Welcome Trans Liberty fans! You are loved and you belong!" one read.

Another read, "Hey trans fans! Glad you’re here! Go Liberty!"

Woman says NY Liberty tried to change her “XX‑XY” paid scoreboard message for halftime of Fever game

Outside the arena, transgender activists gathered to counter a rally supporting Cunningham and shouted "trans lives matter."

Okay. Sure.

New York Liberty scoreboard at Barclays Center shows pro‑trans messages. (Fox News)

Transgender fans are welcome at basketball games. Treat them like everyone else in the building.

Now, can we talk about the real issue?

Cunningham’s response shows a pattern that has been happening in this debate for years.

In 2023, USA Today columnist Nancy Armour criticized ESPN’s Sam Ponder for supporting fairness in women’s sports.

Armour called Ponder’s view bigotry and said Riley Gaines and others who want to keep men out of women’s sports were spreading hate.

I wrote then that Gaines was not anti‑trans. She was pro‑woman.

Gaines says the women’s category should be for females. You can disagree with her, but at least argue with what she actually says.

Calling her a bigot or transphobe is easier than explaining why she is wrong.

A few months later I went to Harvard when Riley Gaines spoke. Before she arrived, a Harvard sports official called her an "athlete‑turned‑anti‑trans‑activist."

Sound familiar?

Instead of explaining why Gaines is wrong about women’s sports, the official labeled her anti‑trans.

Riley Gaines and Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham pose after a WNBA game at Target Center. (Riley Gaines/XX‑XY Athletics)

Then Martina Navratilova got the same treatment.

Navratilova has been a vocal female athlete on this issue. She believes women’s sports should be for females.

A tennis reporter called her transphobic and said she was on an anti‑trans crusade.

So explain why Navratilova is wrong.

Seriously. Explain why a man should be allowed to compete in a female sports category. That is the hard part, so critics change the subject to hate, safety, or protecting children with gender identity issues.

And now the WNBA is doing the same thing.

For years the playbook was simple: call anyone who objects a bigot or transphobe.

Now the tactic is a bit different. Don’t defend men in women’s sports. Just say how much you love transgender people.

Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve wore a "Trans Kids Belong" shirt after Cunningham’s comments got attention. Then came the Liberty scoreboard. Then Cloud’s post.

But Cunningham was not talking about a kid feeling they belong.

"Trans Kids Belong" is a slogan, not an argument. Slogans help when logic is weak. It still does not answer if a man can play in the WNBA.

Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve wears a "Trans Kids Belong" shirt during a game against the Indiana Fever. (Star Tribune via Getty Images)

Freedom has forced the WNBA to face that question.

He has said publicly he plans to enter the 2027 WNBA Draft. Former NBA player Royce White said the same. They are making a point, and it matters because the WNBA’s eligibility rules say only women can play, yet the league has not defined "woman" publicly.

So define "woman," WNBA. That should not take many meetings. The league exists for female basketball players, which should mean a man is not eligible.

Period.

Each time the question appears, the WNBA shifts the talk back to hate, inclusion, and protecting trans people. Soon we are far from the original reason for the discussion.

A trans fan can go to a Liberty game, buy a jersey and shout at referees like anyone else. No one debates if that fan can sit in the stands.

We are talking about who can be on the court.

Turkish‑American former basketball player and activist Enes Kanter Freedom is seen before a game between the Indiana Fever and the Chicago Sky at Wintrust Arena. (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)

Women’s sports exist because sex matters in competition. That is why female athletes have their own leagues, divisions and championships.

So protect that category.

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Keeping men out of women’s sports is not a statement about how anyone should be treated outside sports.

Cloud can post any message, and the Liberty can welcome trans fans on the scoreboard. That is fine.

But the WNBA still has not answered the question that started this debate.

Should a man be allowed to compete in women’s sports?

No.

Maybe one day the people calling others hateful will explain why they think the answer should be yes.

Dan Zaksheske is a reporter at OutKick.

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