Enes Kanter Freedom

After symbolically announcing his candidacy for the 2027 WNBA draft as part of his campaign concerning the definition of sex in women's sport, Freedom attended Chicago–Indiana on 23 August wearing a T-shirt defining a woman as an “adult human female”. A verbal confrontation with Natasha Cloud preceded his ejection from the arena; the Chicago Sky subsequently banned him indefinitely from its home games. On 3 September, he filed a federal lawsuit against the Sky, the city of Chicago and the arena-owning authority, alleging a First Amendment violation.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Protagonist is the complainant

Turkey placed Freedom on its grey list of persons wanted for terrorism, the lowest category in the Interior Ministry's colour-coded system. The associated reward could reach 500,000 Turkish lira, then approximately 26,600 dollars.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Accused

TikTok banned Freedom's account for twelve days following warnings for alleged community guideline violations. The account was reinstated on the day TikTok's chief executive testified before Congress; the company subsequently stated that US moderators had made a mistake.

After Boston traded him to Houston and he was waived, Kanter Freedom claimed that his disappearance from the NBA resulted from his criticism of China and economic pressure. Commissioner Adam Silver denied any blacklisting and said he had explicitly told him he was entitled to advocate for whichever causes he chose.

Attribution

Protagonist is the complainant

Kanter posted messages supporting Tibet, called Xi Jinping a dictator and wore “Free Tibet” shoes. Tencent, the NBA's Chinese broadcasting partner, subsequently stopped offering current and archived Boston Celtics games on its platforms.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Kanter publicly attacked LeBron James and Nike, accusing them of hypocrisy and prioritising money over human rights violations in China. James responded that he thought Kanter was using his name to create an opportunity for himself; Kanter proposed a face-to-face debate.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

No legal proceedings

Attribution

Personally implicated

Turkish prosecutors requested an international arrest warrant, an Interpol Red Notice and Kanter's extradition, accusing him of membership of and financial support for the Gülen movement. The situation also led Kanter not to accompany the Knicks to London, saying that he feared for his safety and/or arrest.

Attribution

Accused

At Bucharest's Henri Coandă Airport, Kanter was refused entry into Romania because Turkish authorities had cancelled his passport. He was held for several hours in the airport zone before returning to the United States.

State of the evidence

Documented

An Istanbul court issued an arrest warrant for Kanter over alleged membership of a terrorist organisation, on the basis of his acknowledged links with Fethullah Gülen's movement.

Attribution

Accused

Istanbul prosecutors prepared an indictment against Kanter over 2016 tweets considered insulting to President Erdoğan, seeking a sentence of up to four years and eight months.

Attribution

Accused

The NCAA found Kanter permanently ineligible to play at Kentucky. According to facts accepted by the parties, he had received 33,033 dollars above his actual and necessary expenses while playing for Fenerbahçe in Turkey; Kentucky's appeal was rejected in January 2011.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated