Former NBA player Royce White says he plans to explore legal avenues against the WNBA after Commissioner Cathy Engelbert told Congress that he and Enes Kanter Freedom are ineligible to play because they are men.
White told OutKick that Engelbert’s response does not resolve his challenge to the league’s eligibility standards, calling on the WNBA to explain how it defines men and women.
“We plan to explore every legal avenue possible to hold the WNBA and NBA community to their stated standards and values,” White said.
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FRISCO, TEXAS – JULY 24: Royce White #30 of the Power shoots against the Aliens during BIG3 Week Six at Comerica Center on July 24, 2022 in Frisco, Texas. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images for BIG3)
Asked whether Engelbert’s letter had officially triggered a previously discussed discrimination lawsuit, White said he could not discuss particulars. He did not announce a filing or provide a timetable for taking legal action.
The dispute centers on White’s and Freedom’s efforts to enter the 2027 WNBA draft after declaring that they identify as women. During the interview, White agreed when asked whether his declaration was “for basketball purposes.”
In an Oct. 16 letter responding to Republican lawmakers, Engelbert stated the league’s position directly.
“With respect to your questions regarding eligibility, only women are eligible to play in the WNBA and the individuals you cite in your letter are both men,” Engelbert wrote.
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The response followed a Sept. 17 inquiry from Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Ind., and four Republican colleagues asking how the WNBA defines “women” under its collective bargaining agreement and why White and Freedom had been deemed ineligible. The lawmakers requested answers by Oct. 16.
The agreement states that “only players who are women are eligible to play in the WNBA,” but does not specify language concerning gender identity or sex assigned at birth, Front Office Sports reported in August.
Engelbert’s response did not supply a definition of “women” or explain the criteria used to classify White and Freedom as men.
White said that distinction remains central to his challenge.
“No, we’re not letting them off that easy,” he said when asked whether Engelbert’s statement represented a step in the right direction.
“She has to define, and the WNBA has to define, what a man and a woman is and why.”
White also called for NBA Commissioner Adam Silver to address the dispute.
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“I’d like Adam Silver and the NBA to weigh in,” he said.
The league had already rejected the two former NBA players’ eligibility through statements attributed to league sources in August.
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White described himself as a longtime fan of women’s basketball, saying he grew up watching older female relatives play sports and learned from local girls’ basketball players.
Former NBA player Royce White, who declared for the 2027 WNBA Draft, and Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita talk in Indianapolis during halftime of an Indiana Fever-Connecticut Sun game about the importance of protecting biological girls and women in girls and women’s sports. (Patricia Babcock McGraw)
“I’m a fan of the WNBA. I think the women have come a long way,” White said. “I’d love to see it not as politicized as it is, because I think it takes away from the beauty of the game.”
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White added that he has been watching the WNBA Finals and is considering attending games, although he declined to identify which ones, citing security concerns.
“I have my eyes on a few games for sure, and I’ve been watching,” he said, describing himself as “scoping the competition.”
