Matt Barnes opposes trans women in NBA

Former NBA player Matt Barnes recently spoke on the topic of trans women playing in the NBA and why he is opposed to it. The controversy over whether transgender athletes should be allowed to compete is a current societal issue that has often been raised in the sports community.

Barnes, who played 14 seasons in the NBA, stated the following in a recent interview:

"I’m pro make your choice.… But sports is different. Sports is a different beast. … I don’t like that. If you’re born a woman, I think you should play women sports. And if you’re born a man, you should play man sports."

He added:

"You wanna be whatever you wanna be..But sports is different...You wanna do whatever you wanna do with your life.. I respect that. It is none of my business. But the sports thing is a bit different."

The player also spoke about Lia Thomas, the NCAA swimming champion who has been harshly criticized for her accomplishments, in response to a query about it. Thomas, who was born male, started hormone therapy in 2019 and has utterly conquered every competition she has entered throughout her career.

“I believe that you need to play in that area no matter how you were born. I disagree with that. If you were born a woman, you should take part in sports for women. If you were born a man, men’s sports should be your priority. I feel that the sports issue is a little unusual.

Transgender participation across sports

Participation of transgender people in sporting events has been a topic of huge controversy and debate for years now. Various sporting bodies have taken differing stances on this sensitive issue.

The Olympic committee has been modifying rules for the community to allow them to participate in the Olympic games. A trans woman named Laurel Hubbard was given IOC approval in 2021 to compete in weightlifting at the 2020 Summer Olympics as the first openly transgender woman.

Quinn, a Canadian non-binary soccer player for the Canadian women's team, became the first transgender athlete to compete at the Olympics Games 2021 held in Tokyo. They made history by becoming the first openly transgender Olympian to medal and take home a gold at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Additionally, in the women's skateboarding semifinals at the 2020 Summer Olympics, non-binary skateboarder Alana Smith represented the United States.

While many people think that players should have the opportunity to compete against those who identify as the same gender, an equal number of people think that trans athletes should only be allowed to compete with people of the same sex as themselves.