Episode Details

On October 16, the WNBA told Congress that Enes Kanter Freedom is ineligible to play because he is a man. We recorded this before that letter existed, and he had already called it.

Enes has declared himself eligible for the 2027 WNBA draft. He walks me through what he found in Article 13 of the collective bargaining agreement, why he says the league asked for months just to decide what a woman is, the eight other men he says are ready to file if the rules do not change, the one word the league could add that would make him walk away for good, and why he insists this is a pro-women position rather than an anti-trans one.

We also get into the career that ended first. Third overall pick, eleven seasons, more than one hundred million dollars in salary, and it was over at twenty nine because he wrote three words on a pair of Michael Jordan sneakers and would not stop talking about China. What his agent told him on the phone the day he understood it was finished. Why his own teammates asked for a separate bus. And why he has not spoken to his mother in almost fourteen years.

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Chapters:

00:00 - Intro

02:46 - Enes Freedom's Journey From the NBA to the 2027 WNBA Draft

05:00 - Why Enes Says He's Eligible to Play in the WNBA

08:42 - Why the WNBA Won't Define What a Woman Is

11:04 - Death Threats, the FBI & Backlash for Defending Women's Sports

16:14 - Why Enes Refuses to Give Up on Women's Sports

19:40 - Locker Rooms, Showers & Following the WNBA's Own Rules

21:42 - Adam Silver, WNBA Leadership & What Happens Next

22:58 - Sophie Cunningham, Natasha Cloud & the Chicago Sky Incident

29:07 - What NBA Players Really Say Behind Closed Doors

33:10 - Kevin Durant, Money & Why Athletes Stay Silent

37:04 - Enes' Lawsuit Against the Chicago Sky

40:58 - How Speaking Out Against Nike & China Ended His NBA Career

45:20 - Slave Labor, China & Why Enes Kept Speaking Out

48:55 - Losing His Career, His Family & Feeling Completely Alone

53:03 - Mental Health, Faith & Surviving the Lowest Point of His Life

56:36 - How the U.S. Government Trained Enes to Deal With Dictatorships

59:23 - LeBron James, Daryl Morey & the NBA's China Problem

01:04:36 - Inside the NBA Bubble: COVID, Kneeling & League Politics

01:09:49 - Marijuana, OnlyFans & What Really Happened in the Bubble

01:12:01 - The Recordings Enes Says Could Expose the NBA

01:15:52 - What Americans Don't Understand About Freedom

01:19:58 - Why Enes Changed His Last Name to Freedom

01:21:04 - Steven Adams, Jaylen Brown & Who Actually Supported Him

01:24:47 - Growing Up Around Anti-Americanism After 9/11

01:27:02 - How Speaking Out Put Enes' Family in Danger

01:29:22 - Why He Hasn't Spoken to His Parents in Nearly 14 Years

01:32:43 - Why Enes Is Single & Who He Turns to When He Has No One

01:38:21 - The Legacy Enes Freedom Wants to Leave Behind<