Sky owner Michael Alter announced the decision on Tuesday during a rare news conference, saying Freedom will not be allowed inside Wintrust Arena for Sky games unless he can prove in the future that he is able to follow the team’s rules without being considered a potential threat.
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Freedom ejected during Sky-Fever
Freedom, listed at 6-foot-10 and 250 pounds, was sitting courtside during Sunday’s game wearing a black shirt that read:
“WOMAN noun. adult human female.”
Late in the third quarter, after Natasha Cloud scored, the Sky guard turned toward Freedom and began yelling and pointing at him.
Freedom stood up, held his arms out and stepped onto the court as security personnel and several Sky players moved between the two.
He was subsequently escorted away from the court area by security.
“His purpose was to provoke”
Alter explained the decision with strong words.
“It was pretty clear to us that his purpose of coming here was trying to be provocative and just see how much attention he could get and stir up and create.”
Freedom stopped near the basket to plead his case with security before being escorted toward the arena’s front lobby. He later spoke with a group of police officers before leaving the venue.
“I was kicked out for supporting women”
Freedom addressed the incident on social media following his ejection.
“I just got kicked out of a WNBA game for supporting WOMEN!”
Freedom and former NBA player Royce White have also declared for the WNBA Draft, saying they identify as women. According to a person familiar with the decision, however, the two are not eligible to participate in the draft.
The WNBA has recently been at the center of debates surrounding transgender women and participation in the league. The league’s collective bargaining agreement states that the WNBA is restricted to women but does not contain more specific language regarding gender identity or sex assigned at birth.
Sky also investigating sex toy incident
Alter also addressed another recent incident during Tuesday’s news conference.
Multiple sex toys were thrown onto the court during the Sky’s 73-70 victory over the Golden State Valkyries on Friday night.
According to Alter, the team has identified the people involved but is still trying to determine their names.
“We know who the people are. We saw them, but we don’t have their names yet. We’re trying to get their names.”
Alter added that the Sky also know how the individuals exited the arena and will take steps to make similar incidents more difficult in the future.
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