Ex-NBA player Chandler Parsons challenges Dawn Staley's view on transgender athletes by giving Zach Edey hypothesis
Chandler Parsons, the former NBA player for the Houston Rockets, disagreed with South Carolina Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley's view on transgender athletes' participation. Staley earlier said transgender athletes should play in women’s sports if they consider themselves women.
Staley and the South Carolina Gamecocks are ready to compete against Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes in the NCAA Tournament champion game. Ahead of the game, Staley was in conversation with the media when Dan Zaksheske from OutKick asked the coach if transgender women should be allowed to play in women’s sports.
“I’m on the opinion of if you’re a woman you should play,” Staley said. “If you consider yourself a woman and you want to play sports, or vice versa, you should be able to play. That’s my opinion.”
Chandler Parsons challenged Staley's view on social media using a Zach Edey analogy.
“so if Zach Edey wants to be a women, he can play against you next season?” Chandler Parsons wrote.
The participation of transgender athletes in professional sports has become a major topic. The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio claims that only 34 transgender athletes have competed in college sports.
Moreover, there have also been pushbacks on including transgender athletes in college sports. Earlier, several athletes sued the NCAA for allowing Lia Thomas to participate in nationals. According to the athletes, allowing Thomas to participate in women’s sports violates athletes’ rights under Title IX.
Chandler Parsons calls out Rockets for poking the bear
Tari Eason might have poked the Golden State Warriors at the wrong time.
Earlier, when Draymond Green said that he didn’t “give a damn about the Houston Rockets, Eason was the first one to respond. He openly challenged the Warriors on his social media, telling them to “come out to play.”
Perhaps Eason forgot that the Warriors were four-time champions and did know how to answer the call. Earlier, when the Warriors came out to play the Rockets at Toyota Center, Eason made another blunder. He wore the “Warriors, Come Out to Play” t-shirt while he sat on the bench.
Chandler Parsons gave his opinion on the whole situation on the Run It Back podcast. He said that what Eason did wasn’t smart.
“You talk sh*t, you poke the bear, you say all this stuff, and then your head coach comes out after you get smacked and calls you soft? It wasn’t smart," he said.
However, Parsons said Eason is young and would learn from his mistakes.
The Warriors defeated the Rockets in a blowout 133-110 win. Steph Curry and Klay Thompson both scored 29 points for the Warriors. Moreover, from the Rockets' perspective, only Jabari Smith Jr. reached the 20-point mark. Even Rockets coach Ime Udoka remarked that his players looked either soft or scared.