TRENDING NBA Predictions World Series schedule Week 7 Waiver Wire 49ers are 6-0 Reese, Dream get even Story by Story by WNBA announces decision on men trying to join league Aug 31, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Valkyries guard Kaitlyn Chen (2) holds a ball as the WNBA logo appears on the ball and shorts before the game against the Indiana Fever at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images Kevin Harrish Tue, October 20, 2026 at 7:17 PM UTC · 2 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Former NBA players Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White – both of whom are men – have spent months trying to make a point about transgender athletes by announcing plans to enter the WNBA Draft. Now, the league has made it clear to Congress that neither of them will be eligible to join the WNBA.
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert told a group of Republican lawmakers in a letter that Kanter Freedom and White are not eligible for the league because they are "both men." But she stopped short of giving the lawmakers the definition of "women" that they had asked for.
Kanter Freedom and White both announced plans to enter the 2027 WNBA Draft while saying that they identify as women. Kanter Freedom has made it clear that the goal is to pressure the league into explicitly barring transgender women.
In September, Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Ind., and four other House Republicans sent a letter to the WNBA asking how it defines "women" under its collective bargaining agreement and why the two former NBA players had been deemed ineligible.
The CBA states that "only players who are women are eligible to play in the WNBA," but it does not define the term in that provision.
Engelbert responded to the lawmakers in an Oct. 16 letter, which was provided to OutKick by the America First Policy Institute, the group representing Kanter Freedom.
"With respect to your questions regarding eligibility, only women are eligible to play in the WNBA and the individuals you cite in your letter are both men," Engelbert wrote, via OutKick .
Engelbert's letter did not announce a new eligibility rule or a broader policy on transgender athletes. The league previously said in August that there were no immediate eligibility matters affecting the WNBA, and it condemned attempts to use the subject to demean or marginalize others.
The lawmakers' letter also raised questions about physical play and fan conduct. Engelbert defended the league's officiating and disciplinary processes, and said that fans who violate the WNBA's code of conduct can be ejected.
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Source: Sports
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