CHICAGO -- Former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom was ejected from Sunday's game between the Indiana Fever and the Chicago Sky after a verbal altercation with Sky guard Natasha Cloud.
Kanter Freedom was sitting courtside in a black T-shirt that read: "WOMAN noun. adult human female." During a timeout late in the third quarter, Cloud began walking toward Kanter Freedom and shouting at him. He was standing with his arms outstretched and stepped toward the court before security cut him off and directed him to leave.
Kanter Freedom pumped his fist and mocked Cloud by making a talking gesture with his hand. While arguing that he should not have to leave, he waved his arms to the crowd before holding out his shirt while exiting.
He had a conversation with a group of police officers before departing Wintrust Arena.
Cloud met with team and league security after Chicago's 113-90 loss but did not speak with the media.
Sky coach Tyler Marsh said Cloud was concerned about being a distraction for the team.
"I told her she wasn't. I told her that we all embrace her as someone that protects our team and protects people that need to be protected and so Tash is always going to stand on that, and we stand for Tash," Marsh said.
"She's passionate and she's passionate about the things she believes in and she's passionate about her teammates, and we're passionate about her."
In the wake of Fever guard Sophie Cunningham's comments regarding transgender athletes that started a national debate, Kanter Freedom, who played 11 years in the NBA, declared himself eligible for the WNBA draft, saying he identifies as a woman. Another former NBA player, Royce White, did as well.
The collective bargaining agreement signed in March states that "only players who are women are eligible to play in the WNBA." There is no further definition of a woman, and the WNBA has no publicly available policy governing eligibility of transgender or intersex athletes.
Kanter Freedom responded to Sunday's ejection in a social media post, writing, "I just got kicked out of a @WNBA game for supporting WOMEN! Let that sink in, AMERICA!"
He also appeared to target Cloud, writing, "It's always women hating on other women."
Marsh had a message for Kanter Freedom, as well.
"There's so much good things about this league and so many good things about the play of these players, and if you come to a game, you should probably come to enjoy the basketball, and that seems pretty simple to me," Marsh said. "I think these players deserve that and have earned that, and being a former basketball player, you should probably understand and feel that, too."
Before the verbal altercation with Cloud, Kanter posted to his social media video of him being confronted by fans outside the arena prior to the game.
Information from ESPN's Katie Barnes and The Associated Press was used in this report.