Fox host: WNBA players are “proving that women shouldn't have a league. It's too dramatic.”
Dana Perino: “Why can't you just play?”
Published
Citation
From the August 24, 2026, edition of Fox News' The Five
JESSE WATTERS (CO-HOST): Kennedy, it seems like the women don't have the mental toughness to handle a heckler.
LISA KENNEDY MONTGOMERY (CO-HOST): He wasn't even heckling. She was heckling him. That is someone who lacks emotional regulation and that is not a good example for young women in the crowd who are looking up to who hope to someday play for the WNBA so they can get beat up by the men. Look at Enes Kanter Freedom. Look at that wingspan. I mean, that is enviable. You're telling me there is a single coach in the WNBA that doesn't look at that and think holy underwear. Boy, would we love to have some defense like that, wouldn't it be nice to have a big man in the women's league blocking every shot that those thumbalinas throw up. He was there cheering on Sophie Cunningham, which is enviable and valid. And I really fear they are going to use this skirmish as a way to ban Enes Freedom from any future WNBA games and then they are going to say, well sorry, you're on probation with the league. You can't even go as a fan. Therefore, you cannot declare yourself eligible for the draft.
That is not going to fix their problem because behind Enes Kanter Freedom -- there are a ton of women who might have at one point played in the NBA who would love to play once again. And enjoy those soft tacos.
WATTERS: Banned from a WNBA game, Dana. Is that really necessary?
DANA PERINO (CO-HOST): That's going to be you. You're like I self-banned. I don't want even want to go -- So the first thing I thought of this morning when I saw the rundown for newsroom and this was on I was like oh, wow, Jesse's not going to enjoy this because you said you were tired of talking about the WNBA.
WATTERS: Years ago.
PERINO: And you know what, so am I. Here's the thing: They are proving that women shouldn't have a league. It's too dramatic. Why can't you just play?
WATTERS: Do you want to hold my hand?
PERINO: I actually want to get canceled for this. OK, here's the other thing. Last night apparently, or whenever this happened, Caitlin Clark had some record-breaking game. OK? She like broke some record.
EMILY COMPAGNO (CO-HOST): Eight threes.
PERINO: What is it?
COMPAGNO: She shot eight threes.
PERINO: She shot eight three-pointers.
GREG GUTFELD (CO-HOST): Eight threes, but that was over a month.
PERINO: Nobody is talking about that accomplishment because we have to talk about the nonbinary turtle whatever, and also, I am going to get canceled. I mean, my last comment. The league has a problem in that it's not a communications problem. It's a policy problem that starts at the top. And none of this is going to get better until they fix that. However, I do think that all of this controversy and all of this drama is driving more people to buy tickets to go to the game to see what's going to happen next and that's not good for the actual athletics of which I care so much.