Three former NBA players, Enes Kanter Freedom, Royce White, and Larry Sanders, have declared for the 2027 WNBA Draft, but don’t expect Patrick Beverley to join them. Beverley isn’t a fan of what he has been seeing and criticized Freedom and White on the latest episode of The Pat Bev Show.
“Enes Kanter, Royce White, I don’t like it,” Beverley said. “… I don’t like what y’all are doing at all. I think y’all disrespecting the brand that showed y’all a lot of respect. I think y’all disrespecting the game of basketball, period. You talk about Enes Kanter; you ain’t even from here. You come to another country, they give you $102 million in the NBA.
“You’ve made a name for being in the NBA, and you gonna come in here and say you want to try out for the WNBA?” Beverley continued. “And I understand the point y’all are trying to make… What y’all doing, it ain’t right… We just got the ladies the bag. They getting a lot of air time right now. The games is lit, right? You got new teams coming into the league that’s popping off, right?
“Regardless of what message y’all trying to get out there, bro, like it’s a way to do it,” Beverley added. “It’s a hundred ways to skin a cat, bro”
Now, this all has been done amid the debate about whether transgender athletes should be allowed to compete in women’s sports. Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham brought it to the WNBA’s doorstep by making it clear she wouldn’t be in favor of it. Some coaches and players are, though.
With this turning into a hot topic of conversation, Freedom chose to declare for the 2027 WNBA Draft. The 34-year-old, who was born in Switzerland and grew up in Turkey, believes he meets all the requirements necessary to play in the league, if declaring who you are is all that is required.
The Collective Bargaining Agreement states that only women can compete in the WNBA. The word itself isn’t properly defined, however, which opens up possibilities.
With the declaration, Freedom is challenging the WNBA’s eligibility rules. The likes of him and White quite clearly do not want transgender athletes competing in the WNBA, and are trying to show how unfair it would be if biological men are allowed to play by just declaring themselves as women.
Freedom has said he and Fever superstar Caitlin Clark would be the modern-day version of Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant. He is confident he’ll dominate, and he almost certainly will if he somehow ends up in the league. Freedom stands at 6’1o” and averaged 11.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.4 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game in his 11-year NBA career. He wasn’t a star, but he would still be able to run riot in the WNBA.
Freedom also recently revealed that more male players are considering declaring for the draft. Talk about a messy situation for the WNBA.
Patrick Beverley’s Daughter Is A Basketball Player
The reason this subject is especially sensitive for Beverley is that his eldest daughter Adlaia Beverley plays on the Nike Girls EYBL circuit. He does not want to ever see Freedom and White share a locker room with her.
“I don’t even think they even thinking about playing against other women,” Beverley said. “… As a man hooper, you can’t even think like that… I’mma tell you something though, and I know this gonna rub a lot of people the wrong way. My daughter plays basketball, AAU circuit, looking to go to a nice college.
“My daughter is a hooper,” Beverley added. “I’m talking about EYBL circuit. My daughter’s a hooper. She trying to get her school paid for. I’m talking about she called me and tell me, ‘Dad, Royce White and Enes Kanter is in my locker room,’ I’m outside the facility at the practice. Straight up, real talk, just man-to-man. I’m outside the facility at the practice. That s*** ain’t right.”
Beverley, who played in the NBA from 2013 to 2024, revealed here that he has a transgender and a gay cousin. The 38-year-old has love for everyone and isn’t against any group of people.
Beverley is firmly against what Freedom and White are doing, though. He believes they are tearing down the WNBA and should try to get their point across another way.
