**Former NBA players face insurmountable eligibility barriers under the WNBA’s collectively bargained rules, which limit participation to women.** In August 2026, ex-NBA centers Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White publicly declared for the 2027 draft while claiming transgender identities, prompting the league to convene a task force and rule both ineligible. League sources described the moves as publicity efforts amid broader debates over inclusion policies, noting the absence of any openly transgender players in the WNBA and the CBA’s explicit language requiring players to be women. Standard draft criteria—age, collegiate or international status, and gender eligibility—further exclude former men’s professional players, with no roster or policy changes since the announcements supporting a different outcome.