Kevin Durant says WNBA is flourishing despite culture wars ‘noise’

HOUSTON – Kevin Durant is not a fan of the latest WNBA drama.

The 16-time NBA All-Star and Houston Rockets star forward is a staunch supporter of women's basketball at the professional, college and youth levels.

But the WNBA has been gripped by controversy this season over the participation of transgender athletes after Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham said in July that young girls playing sports "shouldn't have to go against biological men," despite the fact that no transgender woman has ever played in the WNBA.

Politically conservative organizations and activists seized Cunningham's comments as an opportunity to highlight anti-transgender talking points. In August, former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom, who played parts of two NBA seasons with Durant in Oklahoma City from 2014 to 2016, declared himself eligible for the 2027 WNBA Draft on social media and said he identified as a woman. Earlier this month, Kanter Freedom sued the Chicago Sky after he was ejected from a game against the Indiana Fever and subsequently banned from Chicago's Wintrust Arena.

When Durant was asked on Sept. 22 at Rockets preseason media day about the current "divisiveness" in the WNBA, he pushed back and defended the league.

"All that stuff…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/sports/