When Natasha Cloud told Enes Kanter Freedom that Sophie Cunningham wasn’t “going to sleep with you” at the August 23 Chicago Sky-Indiana Fever game, the exchange might have carried baggage from a three-year-old dispute. Freedom has now revealed that the altercation, which was originally tied to Sophie Cunningham’s comments on transgender athletes, might trace back as far as 2023, while explaining his side of the story.

“Me and Natasha Cloud got into each other back in 2023 when she called America trash,” Freedom revealed in an Instagram clip from an unreleased episode of the Curious Mike podcast with NBA star Michael Porter Jr.

“I simply said, ‘Ask your friend Britney Griner,’ which was held in Russian prison back then. So me and her had a past. Before we went to the game, I told my manager text the Chicago Sky GM. I was like, ‘Hey man, I’m coming to the game. We just want to make sure that, you know, we don’t cause any troubles.’ He just said, ‘Thanks for the heads up, enjoy the game.’ So I simply wore a shirt – it was the definition of a woman (‘adult human female’).”

The interaction between Cloud and Freedom from 2023 began when she took to social media to criticize several major Supreme Court rulings, arguing that America was oppressing its marginalized communities. That led Freedom to challenge her, bringing up Griner, whose detention in Russia was a major storyline at the time. Cloud fired back at him in another post.

“I have respect for @EnesFreedom lived experience in his country,” Cloud wrote. “I would expect him to have the same respect for MY lived experience as a black gay woman in my country.”

However, it’s important to note that the previous disagreement had nothing to do with the one that occurred in 2026.

Freedom’s manager’s message was obtained by OutKick, which revealed that the message said that GM Jeff Pagliocca had “always been fair” and that he “deserved a heads-up in advance.”

Pagliocca replied cordially, telling Freedom’s team that he “appreciate[d]” the message, but team owner Michael Alter later interpreted the advance notice as a sign Freedom intended to provoke.

“When you say you deserve to know, why would you say you deserve to know?” Alter said in a press conference following the incident. “That’s a clear, direct indication that be ready; trouble’s coming.”

Chicago Sky Owner Challenges Enes Kanter Freedom’s Version of Natasha Cloud Exchange

Freedom then explained what happened leading up to and after the incident. According to him, he came to the game to support Cunningham, who had spoken out against “biological men” competing against “young women” during an ESPN profile on July 21.

Freedom, to support Cunningham, decided to declare for the WNBA draft to draw attention to the league’s eligibility criteria, which state that “only women” can participate in the league, but do not list any further criteria. This was Freedom’s first appearance at a Fever game.

“At the end of the third quarter, Sophie Cunningham, she shot a three, right?” Freedom said.

“I simply put my hand up in the air to celebrate it. When Natasha came back, the next possession, and said, ‘She’s not gonna sleep with you.’ And the next possession, I was like, ‘I’m not trying to sleep with her.’ I’m just try to support women. And then after that, she just started to bark at me. She just started to go crazy. So I simply got out. Put my hand in the air, and I said, ‘Listen, I’m here to support women.’ And the security came, right? And they literally throw me out of the game.”

During Alter’s press conference, he contradicted Freedom’s account. According to him, after speaking to several people who were seated near him and had heard the exchange, Freedom was the aggressor.

“He began to chirp with her sometime in the third quarter,” Alter said, per FOS. “I would characterize it as trash-talking, nothing personal. Basketball-related, but enough to get her attention and to engage her, and in my opinion, to try to provoke her.”

Alter revealed at the conference that Freedom was indefinitely banned from Wintrust Arena. That led to the exchange moving off the court, with Freedom suing the Sky, the City of Chicago, and the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, arguing that his First Amendment rights had been violated. It has raised questions about the Sky’s authority to ban a spectator when Freedom argues he simply wanted to express his views.

Only time will tell how the lawsuit is resolved, but what’s clear is that the incident wasn’t the only time Cloud and Freedom had gotten into a disagreement.