CHICAGO — Chicago Sky owner Michael Alter isn’t backing down after the WNBA team ejected former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom from Sunday’s game against the Indiana Fever.
Kanter Freedom attended the game at Wintrust Arena and sat courtside wearing a shirt that read, “WOMAN noun. adult human female.” During a verbal exchange with Sky guard Natasha Cloud in the third quarter, Kanter Freedom stepped over photographers to encroach on the baseline during a dead ball.
A combination of team and arena security immediately removed Kanter from the court and eventually from the arena. Alter also immediately left his courtside seat during the altercation and crossed the court to confront Kanter Freedom, visibly instructing him to leave the vicinity and encouraging security to intervene.
It was the latest stunt pulled by the former player as he continues to insert himself into the debate surrounding the inclusion of transgender women in women’s sports. Kanter Freedom previously declared for the WNBA draft, causing the league to deny his eligibility earlier this week.
In a conversation Tuesday with local media, Alter said Kanter Freedom will be banned from Sky games at Wintrust Arena for the foreseeable future unless “he’s able to prove to our satisfaction that he is able to abide by our rules without being a potential threat.”
“The fact that we’re having this conversation to me is just really sad,” Alter said. “It’s a shame that we’re spending as much time as we are on this and not the wonderful things that are happening in our league — or even some of the not-so-wonderful things, like the Sky not making the playoffs for the third year in a row. I’m sure those are the things we should be talking about.”
Alter said the team discovered that Kanter Freedom would be attending Sunday’s game when the former player’s manager sent a text to Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca. During his prior career as a player development specialist, Pagliocca previously worked with Kanter Freedom while he was still an active athlete. Alter said that relationship ended in 2018 or 2019 and the two had not interacted in the following years besides a brief text exchange.
During an interview Tuesday on Fox News, Kanter Freedom said he reached out to Pagliocca to let him know he would be attending and received a response from Pagliocca welcoming him to the game. Alter disputed this story, saying Kanter Freedom’s manager sent the following message around 2:30 p.m. Sunday:
“Jeff, this is Hank (this is Enes’ manager). I’ve got a new number. You’ve always been fair to me so I figured you deserved a heads up in advance. Enes and I will be at the Sky game tonight. Hope you are well.”
Alter said Pagliocca alerted the Sky to the news and then sent one response about an hour later: “Appreciate the text.”
“A lot of information is out there — a lot of it coming from Kanter Freedom — about what’s occurred,” Alter said. “Most of it is either outright lies or misleading information.”
Kanter Freedom purchased the courtside ticket under a different name — Alter said it appeared a third party made the purchase — which means team security didn’t know where he would be seated until he arrived.
Alter emphasized that Pagliocca did not interact with Kanter Freedom at any point Sunday, adding that Pagliocca was “shocked and surprised to hear that this was something that was happening” after Kanter Freedom’s appearance on Fox News.
“It goes without saying that Jeff does not endorse Enes Kanter (Freedom),” a team official said in a statement.
When Sky security located his seat, it placed a guard in an empty seat near Kanter Freedom on the baseline. The Sky had hired an additional guard to join their two-man game-day security team because of the tension surrounding the previous game against the Fever.
The additional personnel — and coordination with Fever, league and arena security and the Chicago Police Department — made Alter feel confident the team could intervene swiftly if Kanter Freedom crossed a line. Alter said he expected Kanter Freedom to cause problems the moment he saw the text to Pagliocca.
“He’s never been to a Sky game before,” Alter said. “It was pretty clear to us that his purpose of coming here was trying to be provocative, to see how much attention he could get and stir up.”
Alter also disagreed with Kanter Freedom’s characterization that Cloud instigated the altercation in the third quarter. According to several people seated near Kanter Freedom, Alter said the former NBA player began chirping at Cloud throughout the quarter. Although these were basketball-related taunts, Alter felt Kanter Freedom was attempting to initiate conflict.
Alter said stepping toward the court constituted an ejectable action because of the perceived threat to players. A member of the Fever security team was the first to intervene and make that assessment. Alter said the game officials also asked for Kanter Freedom to be removed to preserve a safe playing environment.
Upon reflection, Alter said his only regret was not warning players in advance. The Sky didn’t learn that Kanter Freedom would be seated on the front row behind the baseline until less than 90 minutes before tipoff. With the team on the brink of playoff elimination, Alter elected not to inform players out of fear that it would distract from the game.
The Sky will not prevent similar activists or agitators from attending games, although Alter said he hopes the security response will deter similar actions. He said the team doesn’t aim to prevent fans from attending based on their beliefs or identities but will enforce the fan code of conduct in similar circumstances.
Alter denounced Kanter Freedom as a bad-faith actor and questioned the sincerity of his concerns about transgender women in sports. He also emphasized the importance of defending a safe environment for Sky fans at their home arena.
“I’m thrilled that we have fans who are trans and they love coming to the arena and they feel safe and supported,” Alter said. “That’s a wonderful thing. That’s something we’re proud of and that’s something we want to continue to encourage and we want to make sure that they are safe and do everything we can.
“Sincerely, we want everyone — regardless of who they are, what they are — to feel that way.”
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