Lynx Coach Reeve Reiterates Support for Trans Community Amid Protests

Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve again voiced her support for the transgender community on Thursday, speaking out as competing rallies regarding transgender athletes in women's sports took place outside the team's game. The comments came after the Lynx concluded their regular season with an 86-66 victory over the Indiana Fever at Target Center.

This marks at least the fourth time this season that Reeve has addressed transgender issues during a WNBA media session. "I think that’s probably one of the more meaningful things that would mark the season for me," Reeve said. "It’s that the transgender community is one that deserves our support, and what is happening in the name of some issues of transgender in sports — it’s really an attack on all transgender community. They don’t want transgender people to exist."

Reeve previously wore a "Trans Kids Belong" T-shirt during a prior home game against the Fever on Aug. 2. That game occurred shortly after Fever guard Sophie Cunningham publicly advocated for excluding biological males from women's and girls' sports. Supporters of the "Save Women's Sports" movement held another rally outside the Target Center on Thursday, coinciding with the Lynx-Fever game, which also drew pro-trans counterprotesters. A similar rally took place outside the Lynx's game against the Golden State Valkyries on Aug. 19.

During the Aug. 2 game, Reeve and Cunningham were observed speaking at midcourt. Reeve later stated that both athletes understood their platforms and shared a desire for public education, despite differing views on the issue.

Reeve described wearing the T-shirt as a "small gesture," but noted that messages received from transgender individuals and their families made it one of the most significant moments of her season. "The amount of communication of people who were affected by something as simple as wearing a T-shirt in support of them and helping them be seen — with the platform that we have in professional sports, it was a small gesture by me," Reeve said. "It’s something I believe in, obviously, wholeheartedly."

She added, "If I could have helped just one to feel differently about themselves, because for the transgender community this really is about life and death for them. The number of parents of transgender kids that I heard from and how it helped them and their families, it helped their child think differently about themselves and that there is someone in our position, like we have as a leader. To know that there are people out there that believe in them, that they belong."

Reeve first publicly addressed the topic in July, following Supreme Court rulings that upheld state laws restricting transgender participation in women's sports. At that time, she characterized the political focus on the issue as "sickening" and asserted that "exclusion is never the answer."

Cunningham has stated that her stance is not motivated by animosity. "I think that I am here to extend love," Cunningham previously said. "But I also think with that love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men."

The WNBA acknowledged the debate and convened discussions with team leaders during the season. The league stated that no immediate transgender eligibility matters were affecting the WNBA, while affirming its commitment to fairness, competitive integrity, and inclusion. No transgender woman has played in the league.

The Minnesota Lynx concluded the regular season with a league-best 33-11 record, while the Indiana Fever finished at 28-16 and entered the playoffs as the No. 6 seed.