Former Lynx guard Candice Wiggins, who said in an interview with the San Diego Union-Tribune that her WNBA experience was "toxic" because she was a heterosexual, heard some responses Tuesday.
Current and former WNBA players were empathetic to Wiggins but also disputed her claims in social media posts. An example came from Imani Boyette, who just finished her rookie year with the Chicago Sky. She posted a lengthy blog. An excerpt:
"Next time, I hope you ask your journalist to interview someone else who was there with you. I ask that you use real statistics. I ask that you not try to out other women. I ask that you try not to defame a league that gave you your platform. … The WNBA is about inclusion, always has been and always will be."
Wiggins, who played for the Lynx from 2008-2012 before spending the final three seasons of her career with three other teams, said in the interview that 98 percent of WNBA players are lesbians, and she also said it's depressing to play in the WNBA because "it's not watched."
Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve declined to comment, and the WNBA league office told ESPN that it has no official response "for now."
ESPN commentator Rebecca Lobo, who starred at Connecticut and played for eight seasons in the WNBA, also took issue with Wiggins.
"I know I've been out of the league for a long time, but I can tell you that it [Wiggins recollections] was nothing like my experience as a heterosexual in the WNBA. I couldn't relate to what she was saying at all," Lobo told the Hartford Courant. "Covering the league, being around the league, having friends in the league who still play in the league, having frank conversations with those who are still in the league, I have never heard anyone say they've had those similar experiences or that they've witnessed anything similar to what Candice is talking about. But then again, that's her perception of what her experience was."
