In a year where the WNBA seems to be drowning in a sea of controversies, an issue the league faced last season has reared its ugly head again.
During a game between the Los Angeles Sparks and Atlanta Dream, Sparks forward Jihyun Park stepped to the line to take free throws.
Just after she began her dribbling, a bright green dildo was thrown onto the court, leading to the officials stopping play.
Dream star Angel Reese was seen pointing in the direction of the person who threw the object as play-by-play announcer Mike Watts noted that security ‘made quick work of this’ as it’s assumed the perpetrator was escorted out of the building.
It brings back bad memories of last season when the league was rife with incidents involving sex toys being used as projectiles at WNBA games. The stunts appeared to have some involvement in the promotion of a meme crypto currency. It’s unclear if this incident has a similar connotation.
Some of these grotesque events even led to players, including Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham, being directly hit.
A green dildo was thrown on the court of a game between the Atlanta Dream and LA Sparks
Last season, WNBA games were scourged by people throwing sex toys onto the court
Some, including Charles Burgess (L) and Kaden Lopez (R), were arrested for isolated incidents
These incidents from last season led to bans from stadiums and even arrests of individuals responsible.
One year ago today, a 32-year-old Ohio man identified as Charles Burgess was arrested for throwing the sex toy during a New York Liberty game that struck a 12-year-old girl.
Earlier last August, 18-year-old Kaden Lopez was arrested for disorderly conduct, assault and public display of explicit sexual material for throwing a sex toy onto the court of a game between the Connecticut Sun and the Phoenix Mercury.
Another man, 23-year-old Delbert Carver, was arrested for throwing sex toys on the floor at two separate WNBA games.
At the time, players and coaches expressed their outrage – including Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve.
‘I just want to comment on… this has been going on for centuries. The sexualization of women, this is the latest version of that. It’s not funny,’ said Reeve.
She continued: ‘It should not be a butt of jokes on any radio show, or in print, or in any comments. The sexualization of women is what’s used to hold women down and this is no different.
‘This is just the latest story, and we should write about it in that way. These people that are doing this should be held accountable. We’re not the butt of the joke. They’re the problem, and we need to take action.’
