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Women's basketball great Cheryl Miller has hit out at Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White after they both announced their intent to enter the 2027 WNBA draft.
The debate around transgender athletes in the WNBA continues to rumble on following Sophie Cunningham's comments.
She sparked controversy by stating that transgender women should not compete in women's sports.
"I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans. And I'm like, 'I never once said that'," she told ESPN. "I think that I am here to extend love. But I also think with that love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn't have to go against biological men."
Her words quickly moved beyond the WNBA, with not one but two former NBA players declaring their intention to enter the WNBA draft.
Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White Declare for 2027 WNBA Draft
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Kanter Freedom and White weighed in on the WNBA transgender debate by declaring their intention to enter the 2027 WNBA draft.
The WNBA operates under a collective bargaining agreement (CBA), which sets rules on matters including revenue sharing and player salary caps, among other issues.
On player eligibility, the CBA states: "Only players who are women are eligible to play in the WNBA."
The lack of detail in the league's eligibility criteria, however, has been questioned by Kanter Freedom, who took to social media to declare himself a WNBA prospect.
Kanter Freedom, who played 11 seasons in the NBA, said: "I'm officially declaring myself a WNBA prospect."
Another ex-NBA player in the shape of former Sacramento Kings power forward White, who is now a Minnesota political candidate, also declared for the 2027 WNBA draft, claiming he identifies as a woman for basketball purposes to intentionally challenge and protest the league's transgender eligibility rules.
Cheryl Miller Condemns Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White
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Kanter Freedom and White have drawn a strong reaction from ex-WNBA star Miller, who questioned where they have been in the women's basketball game amid the transgender debate.
Speaking to TMZ Sports, she said: "I'm not giving them, those two, in particular, a whole lot of thought, because there's outsiders looking to hijack our network. It's horrible energy. It's horrible energy."
Miller added: "I would have loved to see these two sitting courtside, you know, watching the game 30 years ago, 20 years ago, 5 years ago, 5 minutes ago. But now all of a sudden, y'all got a collective think tank? Man, shut that noise up.
"All I'm focused on, for real, for real, 100%, is 13 games remaining in The Dub. Playoffs are around the corner. You got spots four, five, six, seven, and eight battling to get home court position. That's what my focus is about.
"I would definitely let cooler heads prevail right now. We want to protect everyone. And we don't want to exclude anyone, but I just think we all have to sit down in the off-season and collectively get our heads and minds around this issue. Obviously, it's a hotbed."