Several WNBA players as well as National Basketball Association players like Carmelo Anthony expressed frustration regarding the fines, including criticism that the players were fined for wearing such apparel while the league handed out shirts in support of victims from the Orlando massacre in June.
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The WNBA is withdrawing its fines for teams and players that showed support of citizens and police involved in recent shootings by wearing black warmup shirts before and during games. Unfortunately, WNBA rules do not allow players to use such material as pre-game warm-ups and the teams and players were both fined in the aftermath.
The T-shirts initially stoked controversy, and prompted four police officers to leave their off-duty jobs as security guards at a Minnesota Lynx game because they took offense at what they felt was anti-police rhetoric.
New York Liberty center Tina Charles, the most prominent of the players fined, said on Twitter: “I refuse to be silent @WNBA”. We have a social responsibility as well’. We were able to show our voice.
The league was still undecided on whether Charles would be fined.
Fever All-Star Tamika Catchings, who is president of the players union, called the league’s decision to rescind the fines a “huge win overall”. “I really do”, he said, citing the former UConn player and Liberty star for wearing her warmup shirt inside-out before Thursday’s game. She said the union proposed letting the players have a limited time to express their opinions on the court. “I think people need to understand that it’s not mutually exclusive”.
We are pleased that the WNBA has made the decision to rescind the fines the league handed down to the players on the Fever, Liberty and Mercury. We have followers now because of who we are, not what we do’. Friday afternoon she had a phone interview with the Associated Press, the New York Times reported.
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‘Our players are important to us. Obviously each player has an opportunity to be who they want and say what they feel, but at the same time, you are representing the United States of America, and you are part of the Olympic team. “We look forward to engaging in constructive dialogue with the league to ensure that the players’ desire to express themselves will continue to be supported”.
