By Aldgra Fredly
Contributing Writer
Former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom was ejected from Sunday’s Women’s National Basketball Association game between the Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky after an altercation with Chicago Sky guard Natasha Cloud.
The confrontation happened at Wintrust Arena late in the third quarter after Cloud scored and the Fever called a timeout. Footage circulated on social media appears to show Cloud walking toward Kanter Freedom, who was seated along the baseline, yelling and pointing at him.
Kanter Freedom stood up, spread his arms and walked toward the court as Cloud’s teammates pulled her away. The two appeared to be in a verbal altercation while security stepped in and escorted Kanter Freedom from the arena.
He was wearing a black shirt bearing the words, “WOMAN noun. adult human female” at the time of the incident.
After the incident, Kanter Freedom wrote in a post on X: “I just got kicked out of a @WNBA game for supporting WOMEN! Let that sink in, AMERICA.”
Cloud met with team and league security after the game but did not speak with the media.
In a post on social media, she said, “To every trans kid/person, You are apart [sic] of MY community & tribe. You belong. You’re loved. You’re seen. You’re perfect as you are & you will always be protected by me.”
Chicago Sky coach Tyler Marsh told reporters that Cloud was concerned about being a distraction for the team.
“I told her she wasn’t,” Marsh said. “I told her that we all embrace her as someone that protects our team and protects people that need to be protected and so Tash is always going to stand on that, and we stand for Tash.”
Kanter Freedom announced earlier this month that he intends to enter the 2027 draft for the top professional women’s basketball league, saying he was eligible under the WNBA’s current policies if he temporarily identifies as female.
Former NBA player Royce White has also declared he was eligible for the WNBA draft by identifying himself as a woman.
In response, the Women’s National Basketball Players Association, the labor union for league players, said it stands for embracing “justice, equity, diversity and inclusion.”
“Hate, abuse and demonization of any person or group of people, including transgender people, only fuel fear, division and harm,” it said, adding that it stands “to protect women’s sports while creating transformational change.”
The league’s 2026 collective bargaining agreement states that only women are eligible to play in the league but does not further define “women.”
Melanie Sun and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
