WNBA players, league confront surge in abusive messages. What they're doing

Jul 24, 2026 - 23:55

0 1

CHICAGO ― Player safety, particularly safety from online abuse, has become a dominant topic for the WNBA in the weeks leading up to the 2026 All-Star weekend. Many players understand it's important, but admit there isn't a simple solution.

"It gets harder in this day and age with social media because ... it's hard to censor what people say or protect players in that way when we all have social media. Everybody has access to our pages, DMs, whatever it is," Washington Mystics guard Sonia Citron told USA TODAY.

"And with betting and everything, it's obviously gotten worse with the parlays and all that, but I think that's just something that we as players can try to ... just be super intentional about what we're looking at. It's still important to have conversations about how we can make it better."

On Tuesday, commissioner Cathy Engelbert and leadership from the Women's National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) met "for an honest and meaningful conversation about the recent increase in racist, hateful, and abusive messages directed at players," according to a statement from the league.

The meeting came in the wake of incidents that shed light on the issue.

Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas called on the WNBA and Engelbert to take action after she received death threats and online abuse following a one-game suspension for "recklessly" making contact with the throat of Caitlin Clark during the Mercury's June 24 111-109 win over the Indiana Fever. Thomas said the league failed to reach out to her about the suspension or in the aftermath of the on-court incident.

Las Vegas Aces point guard Chelsea Gray posted one of the messages she got following an Indiana Fever game, in which a man called her a racial slur. After fans identified the man, he was fired by his employer, Hilton Grand Vacations.

According to a subsequent statement, the meeting "underscored the importance of addressing issues early through proactive communication and strengthening the league-union relationship."

Here's everything you need to know about the conversation:

What measures are already in place to protect WNBA players?

Last season, the WNBA announced its "No Space For Hate" campaign and said it had taken a comprehensive approach focused on four key areas: enhanced technological features to detect hateful comments online, increased emphasis on team, arena and league security measures, reinforcing mental health resources and alignment of core against hate.

"We all know as people who have online presence, you can't stop everything. You know, I think the league's done a good job of implementing a program that can kind of hopefully filter those things out that players are able to enroll in," WNBPA president Nneka Ogwumike said.

 "But I think that our call on Monday was to try and figure out what else, what more we can do?"

As part of the league's 2025 initiative, players were introduced to an app they can download to their phones to help the league monitor instances of online abuse.

“You know, that app was implemented last year, and there was a lot of communication about it," Ogwumike said. "So maybe we need to be better at how we disseminate that information. So players know that that resource is available.”

What would the players like from the WNBA?

The two instances Thomas and Gray raised reignited the discussion about player safety.

“The Aces did a great job of speaking out on it and nipping it in the bud instantly because I don’t like when things fester because it allows a lot of things to seep in," Las Vegas Aces forward A'ja Wilson said of the situation involving Gray. "The biggest tangible thing is to really say things for what they are, and just show us that you hear us and that you’re there for us and then we go from there.

“The more we talk about it, the more that it’s being seen, the more that people can understand that this is a really situation that we have to buckle down on."

Ogwumike also spoke about the urgency Las Vegas gave the situation involving Gray, and how that could be a possible example of what the league could do better moving forward when other situations arise.

"I do know players feel as though they want to feel a sense of accountability for the interactions that are taken way too far," Ogwumike said. "Similarly, in the way that Vegas responded, to how they handled Chelsea's situation, because you have people like DeWanna Bonner (who) is talking about how her family's addresses are being leaked online, you know, and she's receiving a lot of this interaction that she can't escape just when she leaves the practice facility.

"I can't tell you that I know exactly what it needs to be, but I do know that with player perspective, and then, of course, accountability and action from the league, and help from our PA and staff. We can help figure it out in a way that can tailor towards our experience."

WNBA All-Star schedule

Thursday, July 23

WNBA Live: 4 p.m.-8 p.m. ET at McCormick Place. An interactive fan festival featuring athlete appearances, activations, and merchandise.

Friday, July 24

WNBA Live: 9 a.m.-6 p.m. ET at McCormick Place
Skills Night: 6 p.m. ET at Wintrust Arena. Features the WNBA Shooting Stars and WNBA 3-Point Contest (ESPN)