So, the WNBA has a problem. Well, two problems really. The first is that nobody cares about the WNBA. “Whoa there, Phil,” you might say, “plenty of people watch the WNBA.” You’re right. I meant “nobody” in the same way as I mean “nobody believes the Earth is flat.”
So, yes, there are people who like the WNBA, just not enough to make it profitable. Here is what NBA Commissioner Adam Silver had to say about the league’s financial situation in 2025:
Despite significant monetary support from the NBA, the WNBA is “still expected to lose $40 million this season. The tickets are very inexpensive, but even at low prices, we’re not selling enough tickets to run a viable business.”
My solution would be to give them all sticks, replace the basketball with a puck, and make them play on ice, but as a Canadian I may be biased.
It also wouldn’t fix the real problem, which is that women’s sports suck - at least compared to men’s. Don’t get me wrong, I say the same thing about semi-pro men’s leagues so I’m not being sexist. I just don’t like watching sports unless it’s being played by the best players.
This is where the WNBA’s second problem comes in. To improve the game, they kinda want to let men play.
That’s not the way the league will phrase it, of course.
Its collective bargaining agreement states that “only players who are women are eligible to play in the WNBA.” However, they don’t define “woman” or outline any hormone or biological criteria. They also released this statement recently:
“We embrace justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Those are the values that unite this Union and allow it to protect women’s sports while creating transformational change. Hate, abuse, and demonization of any person or group of people, including transgender people, only fuel fear, division, and harm. We will continue to have hard conversations. But we will not be used as political pawns.”
Blah, blah, blah.
If you’re running a women’s league and you can’t come out and say, “no men allowed,” are you really a women’s league?
Wouldn’t it be more honest to rename the WNBA the WWWNBA, where the second and third Ws stand for “wink, wink.”
The desire to parrot DEI platitudes was all well and good when society was too cowed to question these conflicting statements, but then Sophie Cunningham had to open her mouth and spew this hateful and transphobic statement:
“I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men.”
Gasp!
Fortunately, the WNBA does not have any transgender women players who might take offense at the statement. Unless you count non-binary players, which I don’t for the same reason I don’t count unicorns as horses.
Still, there were plenty of “empathetic” people around to ensure that the WNBA aligned itself on the “right” side. By which I mean the side wanting biological men to play in women’s sports. This included Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve, who had this to say:
“We need to protect trans kids. To me, it’s a human rights issue. Every kid has a right to sports.”
The league made its position clear(er) by calling on Big Brother to help:
“Online, report abusive posts and drown out the bots and bad actors. At home, tell your elected officials to strengthen Title IX.”
“Strengthen Title IX.”
The irony of making this statement while arguing that biological men should be allowed to play in women’s sports appears to have been lost on the league’s PR department. Well, it’s not like Media Studies is heavy on logic.
It’s obvious that the WNBA’s brain trust wants to support women and trans women (read: men). That’s their right, of course. And honestly, what could possibly go wrong by attempting to sit on a fence dividing reality from the world of make-believe?
Wait! Breaking news! It appears that ex-NBA players Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White are claiming to be women and have vowed to enter next year’s WNBA Draft.
How brave! How heroic! Two marginalized transwomen striving to bust down the barriers of hate that are keeping them oppressed. “Transwomen are women!”
Inspiring.
The WNBA must be overjoyed!
Wait! I’m getting an update on this breaking news. It appears that the league does not believe the claims of these two strong and beautiful women, going so far as to denounce their efforts as “bad-faith” actions meant to “demean or marginalize others.”
I’m shocked! I thought “your gender is what you say it is.” I thought “no one can tell you your gender.” How can an anti-hate task force call into question a person’s right to identify as they see fit?
I can just see the next hateful step: a biological definition of “woman.” Who will define it? What if there are multiple conflicting definitions?
Who am I to believe? Is there no slogan that will save me?
Wait...
#BelieveAllWomen.
About the Author
Phil is a freelance writer, Canadian Navy veteran, and classical liberal. He has lived and worked in both Canada and the United States and currently resides in Vancouver, British Columbia, where he writes on politics, individual rights, free speech, and whatever else catches his fancy.
📰 Hoist the Black Flag — politics, rights, and free speech
😄 Schrödinger’s Chicken — because sometimes you just need to laugh
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