A WNBA task force said last week it would be holding a meeting to discuss trans-identifying athletes and their eligibility in the league.
The meeting was meant to be all-hands-on-deck, with presidents and general managers gathering with league officials on Wednesday amid what seems like constant controversy for the league.
‘We will approach these important conversations thoughtfully.’
Protests and counterprotests have left the WNBA swimming in incidents, resulting in growing calls for the league to adopt a female-only policy that has spread across sports worldwide.
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert had sent a memo to team representatives that the topic would be discussed at the meeting, but at the meeting, no conclusion on any actual policy seems to have been reached.
In its official statement, the league briefly touched on the idea of making a decision before criticizing its detractors.
“Today’s meeting covered a wide range of topics, including ongoing discussions on transgender athletes and the continued hate and vitriol directed at players online. We will continue to engage all league stakeholders in the coming weeks and months,” the WNBA said, per ESPN.
“We will approach these important conversations thoughtfully and in alignment with the values of our league,” the WNBA added.
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The WNBA went on to say, “There are no immediate eligibility matters affecting the WNBA, and we strongly denounce the bad-faith efforts to use these topics to demean or marginalize others.”
This is likely referring to at least two former NBA players who said they are making themselves eligible for the 2027 WNBA Draft, given that no definition of “woman” exists under the league’s collective bargaining agreement.
“See you at training camp,” said former NBA center Enes Kanter Freedom, who stands 6’10.”
Article XIII, Section 1 of the WNBA’s 2026 collective-bargaining agreement says that “only players who are women are eligible to play in the WNBA,” but it does not provide a definition of the term. The league also did not respond to previous inquiries from Blaze News about what it considers a woman to be.
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Former NBA player Royce White also declared himself to be “transgender” in order to join the WNBA. “I’m a woman. I identify as sometimes identifying as a woman for the purpose of basketball, professional basketball, so I’ll be declaring for the WNBA Draft in 2027 as well,” he said earlier this month.
Alongside the former NBA players is Julie Tétart, a dominating force in France’s Ligue 2 women’s basketball. Tétart is male, but he has absolutely crushed his female competition overseas, recording over 20 points per game while also grabbing more than 20 rebounds per game, about double that of the second-highest rebounder.
Tétart recently said if the WNBA came calling, he wouldn’t turn the opportunity down.
“If they contact me, I won’t say no.”
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