Photo credit: Enes Kanter (X)
Enes Kanter Freedom is back in the news, and this time it has nothing to do with basketball. The former NBA center, who last appeared in a professional game in 2022, posted a video on X on Friday declaring himself eligible for the 2027 WNBA draft. Wearing an orange WNBA sweatshirt, he argued that if self-identification is all the league requires, then he meets every qualification. The post cleared two million views within hours.
What Freedom actually claimed
Freedom framed the move as a challenge rather than a joke. He said his team had reviewed the league’s eligibility rules and its language around inclusion, and that his goal was not to mock anyone but to see those rules applied the same way for everyone. Whether or not that framing holds up, the post functioned as a provocation. Reaction online split along predictable lines almost immediately.
What the WNBA rules actually say
The facts here matter more than the framing. The WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement states that eligible players must be women. However, it does not define the word woman anywhere in the document. It also does not address gender identity or establish any self-identification standard. In other words, there is no policy for Freedom to invoke. Neither the league nor the players union has publicly explained how eligibility would be determined for a transgender or self-identified player. The WNBA has not responded to Freedom’s post, and he will not be drafted.
The controversy that set this off
Freedom’s declaration did not arrive in a vacuum. It followed weeks of public debate triggered by comments from Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham, who said in an ESPN profile that she wanted to protect young girls from competing against biological men while also stating she holds no hostility toward transgender people. Her remarks drew rallies outside arenas and pulled in voices from across the sport and beyond.
Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve wore a shirt in support of transgender kids. Golden State Valkyries player Gabby Williams said she would welcome a transgender athlete in the league. Political figures stepped in as well, with Vice President JD Vance praising Cunningham and activist Riley Gaines backing Freedom.
Former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom has officially declared for the WNBA Draft. pic.twitter.com/OEpGCni9PL
— FearBuck (@FearedBuck) August 7, 2026
Why it traveled so far so fast
Freedom floated a similar idea about the WNBA back in 2023, so the move itself is not new. What changed is the moment. His post dropped into a national argument that had already been building for weeks, which is why a claim with no actual legal grounding still managed to reach millions of people before the weekend was over.
SOURCE: ESPN
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