Stephen A Smith Cheers Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White: Exposing WNBA’s ‘Flagrant Hypocrisy’ on Trans Issues
· Yahoo Sports
Stephen A. Smith defended ex-NBA players Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White for taking an “important” stand by declaring for the WNBA draft in protest of the league’s stance on trans athletes.
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The ESPN star said both Freedom and Kanter are engaged in “an act of trolling to some degree” on his SiriusXM radio show on Monday, “but that doesn’t mean you don’t respect their position.” Smith said he certainly respects it, because he said the WNBA has not done enough to defend the “W” in its name.
“They’re on a mission to point out the flagrant hypocrisy if the WNBA is willing to allow such a thing to transpire, unless they’re going to be rigged and dogged in their belief that the WNBA is for women,” Smith said.
He then read from the WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement, which states “Only players who are women are eligible to play” in the league.
“Seems clear, wouldn’t you say? Yes, until the debate comes about: What qualifies as a woman?! That is where the ridiculousness of our society has come to!” Smith vented. “That is what they’re challenging.”
Smith shared his take a week after Freedom and White both announced they were declaring for next year’s WNBA draft. Freedom on Monday posted a video where he said it was “official-official” and shared the letter he sent to WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert announcing his decision.
“Rules are rules!” Freedom captioned his video, which showed him sitting in front of a painting of George Washington.
A day earlier, White told Fox News he was “having a blast in my feminine era.” He also said there was no reason for the WNBA to block him or Freedom from joining, since they would help spur fan interest and a ratings boost.
“I never thought I was a woman. You know, I’ve always trusted the science and I thought I was a man my entire life,” White said in his interview. “But after further review, [and] a strong look at my personal preferences, it would appear that I am indeed sometimes identifying as a transgender woman. And I think it’s only fair I get a chance to play with some of my queens in the twilight of my career.”
White was a first-round pick of the Houston Rockets in 2012, but the 35-year-old only played in three NBA games due to struggles with generalized anxiety disorder; 34-year-old Freedom averaged 11 points and eight rebounds per game in his 11 NBA seasons.
Their announcements spurred the WNBA to put out a statement saying it would not be “used as political pawns.” The WNBA is also planning on reviewing its approach to trans issues at a task force meeting this week.
Smith on Monday mocked the WNBA’s statement, saying the league was already political.
He said that was made apparent this past weekend, when Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham was clobbered with a clothesline smack to the head by Chicago Sky player DiJonai Carrington — who then claimed the world had witnessed “WHITE PRIVILEGE” once she was back in the locker room.
Cunningham has been at the center of a media firestorm over the last month, after she told ESPN she did not believe girls and women should play against biological boys and men who have transitioned.
“See, what the WNBA wants to sit up there and posture about, ‘We won’t allow things to be politicized’ — AS IF YOU CAN CONTROL IT!” Smith continued on Monday. “There’s only one way to control it — have more control over your product. Have a clear delineation as to what defines a woman, what defines a female. Otherwise you’re gonna have cats 6’8 with goatees walking in yo’ league.”
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