Kevin Durant defends WNBA from critics and political stunts: ‘All that stuff is just noise’

When it comes to the WNBA, many people want to center the conversation on political punching bags and off-court issues.

Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant wants the conversation to be about how successful the women at the center of it have become.

While the league has never been more successful, it’s also attracted the spotlight from grifters and right-wing audiences who want to use it as a culture war punching bag, most notably around the transgender athlete debate. Former NBA players Royce White and Enes Kanter, the latter of whom briefly played with Durant on the Oklahoma City Thunder, have attempted to play in the women’s league as part of a misguided statement around protecting female athletes.

Durant, long a proponent of the WNBA and its players’ success, was asked about the divisive narratives and conversations surrounding the league in recent years. He sees all of that as “noise” that needs to be ignored so others can appreciate what the players have accomplished for themselves.

“You’ve been a huge proponent and supporter of women’s basketball,” asked a reporter on Tuesday. “But I’m curious, given the current state of the WNBA, the [Houston] Comets are returning, but also there’s such divisiveness around the game. And you’ve had a former teammate that’s been involved in some shenanigans around the league. I’m curious just what your perspective is on what’s going on around it and how you continue to support the league.”

Kevin Durant on the drama surrounding the WNBA:

“All that stuff is to be noise man. WNBA is flourishing. Look what these women are doing. Look at the money they made over the last few years. Look at the visibility of their league. They got 4, 5 signature athletes on major brands… pic.twitter.com/LP6zHl5TGp

— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) September 22, 2026

“All that stuff is just noise, man,” said Durant. “The WNBA is flourishing. Look what these women are doing. You know, look at the money they’ve made over the last few years. Look at the visibility of their league. They got 4 or 5 signature athletes that are representing major brands. These women have brands for themselves. They’re businesswomen for themselves outside of the game.

“So, a lot of this stuff, you know, the politics that they bring into sports nowadays, I understand the messaging behind what they trying to do, but— a person like me who just strictly cares for the purity of the sport, I do not give a f*ck about none of that. I care about flourishing and pushing the league forward, and that’s what’s happening right now.”

When you do blot out the “noise,” you do see just how far the WNBA has come in the last decade, and how much room there is to be even more successful in the decade ahead. If the league can find a commissioner who can help it move past the distractions, the sky’s the limit.