Enes Freedom has entered the chat. The 11-year NBA veteran said Friday on X that he was "officially declaring" for the 2027 WNBA Draft in a sarcasm-laden post that immediately drew social media condemnation. Freedom is capitalizing on the recent controversy surrounding statements made by the Indiana Fever's Sophie Cunningham. Though Cunningham has attempted to distance herself from the remarks, she told ESPN that she wanted to use her platform as a WNBA player to "protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn't have to go against biological men."
More on Enes Kanter: Recent HoopsHype Rumors
Ex-Knicks coach David Fizdale says team brass told him to tank during the 2018-19 season to try to get Zion Williamson or Ja Morant, while assuring
him that Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving were coming to the Knicks the following summer. The Knicks went 17-65 that season with a roster that featured Tim Hardaway Jr. and Enes Kanter. “The plan that we came up with, I was all in on that, and I was like this is the deal and this is the way to go about it. It just didn’t come to fruition,” Fizdale said in an interview with @RunItBackFDTV. “...Losing all them damn games, donating my record to get Zion Williamson or Ja.” — 3/5/2026 Newark Star-Ledger
“She chose to play for a country that is literally responsible for the deaths of tens of millions of its own people, and literally running a concentration camp while we’re talking,” Freedom said, comparing Gu’s silence on the issue to LeBron James’ declining a question about China’s alleged human rights abuses in 2019. — 2/19/2026 New York Post
Former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom condemned the American-born Team China Olympic skier Eileen Gu during an interview on Fox News’ “Ingraham Angle” on Tuesday. “I’m just going to say it, she’s a traitor,” Freedom said. “She was born in America. She was raised in America, lives in America, and chooses to compete against her own country for, literally, the worst human rights abuser on the planet, China. She built her fame in a free country, and then chooses to represent an authoritarian regime.” — 2/19/2026 New York Post
Enes Kanter Freedom: Hey @SHAQ , Let me teach you a lesson. At what point do you choose morals over money? Whether you were paid for these photo ops or not is irrelevant. You willingly posed next to a man the entire world knows is a dictator. And let’s be clear about who you chose to stand with. This is a dictator who - Bombs Kurdish villages and is responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent civilians. - Actively weaponizes ISIS for political leverage. - Controls and weaponizes HTS. - Uses refugees as a weapon to threaten and blackmail Europe. - Helps criminal regimes like Iran and Venezuela evade U.S. sanctions. - Throws infants and innocent civilians into prison. This is not ignorance. This is not neutrality. This is complicity. So before smiling for cameras with a world known dictator, ask yourself one question: How much is your integrity worth? Because when you choose money and access over morals, values, and principles, you are no longer neutral. You are helping normalize evil. I am not trying to embarrass you. I am holding you accountable. You are one of the most recognizable athletes on the planet. Millions of people, especially kids, look up to you. When you stand next to a tyrant, you help launder his crimes and give him legitimacy. You do not need this. You do not need his money. You do not need his approval. What you are doing is beneath you. History is very clear about people who chose comfort and profit over courage. Choose wisely. — 1/29/2026 x.com
"You've been warning about the betting ties for years. You said this is inevitable. What do you know about this?" Enes Kanter Freedom: "It comes down to one word — trust. Obviously, people love basketball because they believe the games are real and all the players are giving an honest effort. If people start to think gambling is a factor in the outcome, the whole sports world is in trouble. Actually, right now, there are a few separate problems happening at the same time. One is gambling scams involving people around — that’s criminal activity outside of the game. Another issue is players being accused of faking injuries, or not giving real efforts and missing shots on purpose — that hurts the competition. Then, there are leaks of medical information before it becomes public. That’s basically insider trading — using injury news before the game." — 10/27/2025 YouTube
You've called on Adam Silver to do more. What do you want him to do?" Enes Kanter: "They tied gambling to the game. They made business deals with sportsbooks and gambling, even integrated it into the game broadcasts. It’s not just fans betting — the numbers and leagues want to take gambling money. You are responsible for the follow-up that comes with it. When scandals happen, you cannot act surprised. You cannot promote betting — it all comes down to leadership. The Feds watch basketball. If that trust is damaged, the person running the league has to be held accountable. When the money starts feeling bigger than the sport, then it’s time for new leadership. That’s what I believe. I think Adam Silver should step down — not out of hate — but because leadership means accepting the consequences of your decisions." — 10/27/2025 YouTube
The NBA has obviously not been a fan of President Trump, and they’ve been all in on China. These are some of the issues you dealt with when you were a player, and you pushed back on China — and then were pushed out." Enes Kanter: "It's crazy to me. When they put us in the NBA bubble, Adam Silver himself said, 'This is basketball. Let’s talk about the problems that are happening in America.' Everyone was talking about the problems happening here, and Adam Silver and the NBA knew it wasn’t going to affect them. Money and business — more people watched NBA games in China than the American population last year. When I came out and started to talk about China’s human rights violations, they tried to silence me. It’s a shame — because Adam Silver is literally selling this league to the biggest dictatorship in the world. So that’s why I feel like he should step down as commissioner." — 10/27/2025 YouTube
Jordan McRae: I’ve never seen someone be so obsessed with another man in my life lol — 7/19/2024 Twitter @JordyMac52
Considering that it was the Lakers who drafted Bronny, Kanter Freedom had to call it like he saw it. "He might be a good dude, but he’s not good enough to play in the NBA. The reason he got drafted is because of LeBron, the reason JJ Redick is the coach is because of LeBron," he told OutKick's "Don't @ Me." — 7/14/2024 FOXnews.com
"No other player wants to go play with LeBron. You had so many other free agents. . . . No one wanted to go play with him, because they know that it’s all about LeBron," he continued. "They’re gonna get zero clout. . . . When the Lakers’ season fails, LeBron tries to find a player to blame, and he blamed the whole season on Russell Westbrook, so he is not a good teammate. Obviously, he runs the media, and he tries to control this narrative, but when you actually know and have a conversation inside of the NBA and its players, nobody wants to play with him. . . . "When I see a dictator, I know it – LeBron is literally like the dictator of the NBA. He controls the media, he controls his narrative, if you go against his agenda, you get traded, everybody knows it." — 7/14/2024 FOXnews.com
This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Enes Freedom trolls WNBA, declares for 2027 WNBA Draft
