Social media posts from Chicago Sky guard Natasha Cloud about the assassination of Charlie Kirk resurfaced on Sunday after she got into a heated confrontation with former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom during a game against the Indiana Fever at Wintrust Arena.
Cloud stormed over to Freedom, who was sitting courtside, during the second half, and the two shouted at each other before her teammates pulled her back to prevent an ejection. Freedom, who has sparked controversy after claiming he is "transitioning" to become a WNBA player, was later kicked out of the arena after he walked onto the court.
Cloud has built a reputation as a fierce social justice advocate and one of the more vocally progressive players in the WNBA. She reinforced that image by posting to Threads: "To every trans kid/person, you are apart of MY community & tribe. You belong. You're loved. You're seen. You're perfect as you are. & you will always be protected by me."
Enraged, right-wing social media accounts dug up posts Cloud made in the days after Kirk was assassinated on the campus of Utah Valley University last September.
Cloud's old comments on Kirk's death
Replying to a comment from an internet troll on September 12, 2025, two days after the right-wing activist's assassination, Cloud wrote that Kirk "lobbied to be shot in public. He literally called for public executions."
After Sunday's incident with Freedom, right-wing accounts began amplifying the old post. One user on X wrote: "Natasha Cloud the player that went at Enes Kanter said Charlie Kirk lobbied to be shot in public. The WNBA tolerates the most vile behavior as long as it is from the radical Left. They discriminate against fans who oppose men in women's sports with today being another example." Another user posted, "Man she is asking for it!" A comment on a video of the incident read, "F*** Natasha Cloud. She was happy when Charlie Kirk died. She isn't even human."
Around the same time as her original posts, Cloud also tweeted about the political background of the family of Kirk's alleged assassin, Tyler Robinson. In a since-deleted tweet, she wrote: "So how y'all gone twist this? Raised in a good middle class family, dad was an officer/church leader, whole family of Republicans and gun owners [and] Trump supporters." She also claimed Robinson and his family were "far-right Republicans."
Freedom gives his side of the story
Freedom told OutKick that the confrontation began after Sophie Cunningham hit a three-pointer and he raised his hands to celebrate. "Literally, a couple [of] possessions later, Natasha came back and started screaming and yelling and said, 'She's not gonna sleep with you.' And I was like, 'I am not trying to sleep with her. I'm just here to protect women and support her.' And then, obviously, after that, she started yapping, and she started to walk towards me, and literally I just got up, and then I was like, 'I'm just here to protect women, and that's all.'"
Freedom said Cloud then began using "very heavy language" in front of a crowd that included children. "I just cannot believe that she was just cussing and using those F-bombs in front of all these kids. I'm sure she's loved in Chicago and many kids are idolizing her and stuff, but that's not how a WNBA athlete should react."
After he was removed by security, Freedom posted on X: "I just got kicked out of a @WNBA game for supporting WOMEN! Let that sink in, AMERICA!" He also wrote, "It's always women hating on other women." In another video, he was seen arguing with security as he was escorted away from his courtside seat, telling them, "This is unacceptable."
Freedom, who has spent more than a decade in the NBA, recently caused a stir in women's basketball after revealing he wants to play alongside players such as Caitlin Clark.
Fans confront Freedom outside the arena
Earlier in the night, Freedom was confronted by furious fans as he arrived at Wintrust Arena. He wore a T-shirt printed with a dictionary-style definition of the word woman: "Woman. Noun. Adult human female," with "woman" and "female" highlighted in red. One fan called the 34-year-old a slur and told him to "get [his] b**** a** out of Chicago," while another shouted "f*** you b****," and a third made an obscene gesture in his face as he stood flanked by police. "We are getting attacked before the @WNBA game in Chicago," he posted alongside video of the incident. Other fans in Chicago greeted him with cheers and high-fives.
Wider tensions across the WNBA
There have been regular protests and counter-protests at WNBA games in recent weeks, after Cunningham sparked controversy by saying she wants to "protect young girls" from "biological men." On Sunday in Chicago, a "save women's sports party" was held in support of Cunningham, and Freedom stopped by to greet fans before heading inside, where he was pictured courtside as Cunningham and Clark faced a rematch against the Sky and DiJonai Carrington.
Earlier this month, Cunningham accused Carrington of "playing the race card" after the Sky guard appeared to suggest her rival benefited from "white privilege" during a separate fracas.
Carrington ejected after hard foul on Cunningham
Carrington was ejected from Sunday's game after a hard foul left Cunningham bloodied and on the floor. Toward the end of the first quarter, Cunningham drove to the basket and was struck in the face by Carrington's arm as the Sky guard attempted a block. Carrington was assessed a flagrant 2 and sent to the locker room, with both Cunningham and Clark seen waving as she left the court. Minutes later, Carrington posted on social media, "WHITE PRIVILEGE @indianafever," sparking further controversy.
Cloud's earlier remarks on fan misconduct
Cloud made headlines of her own recently after a lengthy postgame comment on the sex-toy-throwing incidents that have disrupted recent WNBA games. Speaking to reporters after Chicago's win over the Golden State Valkyries on Friday, Cloud said the behavior was "lame as f***; sorry, mama," adding that it was mostly men responsible. "That is the gayest s*** that I've ever heard," she said. "So I'm a firm believer in anyone that has so much problem with a certain marginalized group, just come out and say that you're a part of our marginalized group because that hate is unwarranted. It's not factual."
Cloud called those responsible "extremely weak," saying their actions fail to rattle players and instead reflect poorly on the fans involved. "Y'all lame as s*** to us. Y'all gay to us and we see it," she said, before questioning how the culprits explain the purchases on their bank statements. "Y'all weird. Like it says d**** on their credit card. Like they have to go through their financial advisor and be like, 'What's this green d****? You good, Chad? You good, Richard? Are you good, Paul?'"
