{"id":141703,"date":"2026-08-04T22:15:06","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T02:15:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/espns-stephen-a-smith-says-lynx-coach-cheryl-reeve-hurt-wnba-with-trans-shirt-controversy-141703"},"modified":"2026-08-04T22:15:06","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T02:15:06","slug":"espns-stephen-a-smith-says-lynx-coach-cheryl-reeve-hurt-wnba-with-trans-shirt-controversy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/espns-stephen-a-smith-says-lynx-coach-cheryl-reeve-hurt-wnba-with-trans-shirt-controversy-141703","title":{"rendered":"ESPN’s Stephen A Smith says Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve hurt WNBA with trans shirt controversy"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

When Stephen A. Smith<\/a> finally decides to say it, chances are the rest of the country already got there first.<\/p>\n

Minnesota Lynx<\/a> head coach Cheryl Reeve found herself right in Smith’s crosshairs after wearing a “Trans Kids Belong” T-shirt on the bench, and Stephen A. tore into her activist grandstanding.<\/p>\n

Reeve chose to wear the shirt during her first matchup against Sophie Cunningham since the Fever<\/a> guard publicly defended women-only competition.<\/p>\n

CHERYL REEVE SENDS CLEAR MESSAGE TO SOPHIE CUNNINGHAM WITH \u2018TRANS KIDS BELONG\u2019 SHIRT DURING FEVER-LYNX GAME<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

One side sparked outrage over the “erasure” of trans rights<\/a>; the other contended that preserving parity and safety in competition matters more than inclusion.<\/p>\n

Reeve made sure her message landed on one of the WNBA’s<\/a> biggest regular-season stages. But Smith wasn’t buying the coincidence.<\/p>\n

“And then you’re going to come out with a T-shirt. No regard for the WNBA. No regard for the sponsors that may be put off by that. No regard for the bottom line that might be affected,” Smith blasted.<\/p>\n

WNBA SUDDENLY WANTS TO STICK TO BASKETBALL AFTER YEARS OF MAKING POLITICS PART OF THE PRODUCT<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“It’s just an accidental coincidence that that’s the game you chose to wear that? Oh, THIS IS THE B.S.! IT’S THE SELFISHNESS! IT’S PUTTING YOURSELF BEFORE THE BETTERMENT OF THE WHOLE!”<\/p>\n

Even Smith has reached the point where he’s willing to say what everyday fans have been shouting for years: a women’s basketball coach refusing to defend women’s sports is flat-out absurd.<\/p>\n

“You are Cheryl Reeve, the head coach of the Minnesota Lynx. That is an irresponsible thing to do,” Smith said. “You are a coach for a female basketball team. Do you not think that females are being screwed over if they have to compete against an individual born as a male? What are you talking about?”<\/p>\n

Sophie Cunningham’s stance has already inspired support rallies<\/a> in WNBA cities like Minnesota and Seattle, with another planned outside the Fever’s upcoming game against the New York Liberty.<\/p>\n

Smith argued that Cunningham and other women speaking out are taking the public heat while influential coaches like Reeve<\/a> use the spotlight to push the opposite message, even if it risks alienating fans and sponsors that the WNBA needs to keep growing.<\/p>\n

“That’s what Sophie Cunningham was talking about. That’s what Riley Gaines is talking about. How would you, coach Cheryl Reeve, condone that?” Smith asked. “If you’re a male and transitioning to female, you shouldn’t be playing against the women. Nobody said you can’t transition… The issue here is competing against women.”<\/p>\n

Smith urged that compassion and common sense don’t have to be at odds.<\/p>\n

“To the trans athletes out there: people are not against you, like some people may lead you to believe,” Smith explained. “There are a lot of people who are empathetic and sympathetic to the challenges that you face… and want you to live your best life.<\/p>\n

“But it can’t be at the expense of young ladies born as girls, raised as girls, evolving into women … You don’t have the right to impede upon women’s sports.”<\/p>\n

It might have taken ol’ Stephen A. longer than most to get there, but the point remains dead-on.<\/p>\n

If the WNBA wants to protect its booming business, it needs to stop letting activist coaches hijack the league and get back to protecting the women who built it<\/a> \u2014 and the next generation they’re supposed to inspire.<\/p>\n

Send us your thoughts: alejandro.avila@outkick.com \/ Follow along on X: @alejandroaveela<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source – https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/outkick-sports\/espn-stephen-smith-lynx-coach-cheryl-reeve-hurt-wnba-trans-shirt-controversy <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Stephen A. Smith finally decides to say it, chances are the rest of the country already got there first. Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"twitter_2902945987_2902945987":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[16563],"tags":[],"stock_ticker":[],"class_list":["post-141703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-market-news","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nESPN's Stephen A Smith says Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve hurt WNBA with trans shirt controversy - Wall Street PR<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/espns-stephen-a-smith-says-lynx-coach-cheryl-reeve-hurt-wnba-with-trans-shirt-controversy-141703\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"ESPN's Stephen A Smith says Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve hurt WNBA with trans shirt controversy - Wall Street PR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When Stephen A. 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