Enes Kanter Freedom is no longer welcome at Wintrust Arena. The Chicago Sky banned the former NBA center and anti-trans athlete activist from all home WNBA games after the he got into a sideline altercation with guard Natasha Cloud during Sunday's matchup against the Indiana Fever.
Enes Kanter Freedom Clashes with Natasha Cloud at the Chicago Sky Game
The confrontation unfolded in the third quarter. Freedom, who wore a shirt reading "WOMAN noun. adult human female," had been exchanging words with Cloud from his seat.
After she scored with 1:22 left in the period, Cloud turned toward Freedom and shouted at him. He stood, extended his arms, and stepped toward the court before security removed him from the building.
Sky Statement on Enes Kanter Freedom & WNBA Rules
Sky owner Michael Alter announced the ban Tuesday, calling Freedom someone who "has the potential to be a threat." Alter added that Freedom's goal was "trying to be provocative and just see how much attention he could get."
"He said, 'Well, I didn't cross the baseline,' as if that's some magical threshold," Alter said.
"One reason he didn't cross the baseline was because he was prevented from doing so. But regardless of that, the security people's job is not to wait until a threat intensifies. It's to avoid the threat from happening when [a] perceived threat occurs. He started walking. They didn't wait to see how far he was going to walk or what he was going to do when he got there."
The incident follows weeks of escalating tension around WNBA trans athletes policy. Freedom and fellow former NBA player Royce White recently declared for the 2027 WNBA draft, claiming to identify as women.
However, the league dismissed the move as a mere publicity stunt.
