WNBA Finals Teams Skip Anthem Despite League Rules Requiring Players on Court

Clear Facts

• The WNBA rulebook requires players, coaches and trainers to stand and line up on the sidelines or foul line during the national anthem.
• Both teams in the WNBA Finals left the court at Chase Center before the anthem on Saturday and returned within seconds after it ended.
• The WNBA and both teams have declined to answer questions about the absences or plans for Game 2.

The WNBA’s own rulebook is clear about what should happen during the national anthem. Players, coaches and trainers are expected to form a standing line along the sideline or foul line while the anthem plays.

Yet both Finals teams ignored that requirement at Chase Center on Saturday. They left the court right before the anthem began and returned just seconds after it finished.

The league and the teams have refused to explain the decision. Multiple inquiries sent to the WNBA, the Dream and the Valkyries have gone unanswered.

“Getting an explanation for why the teams chose to be off the floor for those roughly two minutes has been incredibly difficult.”

OutKick attended all pregame and postgame press conferences but was never called on to ask about the anthem. Follow-up questions about whether the teams will be present for Game 2 on Monday have also received no response.

The rulebook language is straightforward and leaves little room for interpretation. It covers players, coaches and trainers alike. The league has not clarified whether any discipline is planned or whether it will require the teams to be on the court for the next anthem.

Game 2 tips off at 8 p.m. ET Monday at Chase Center. More than a day after the first absence, the WNBA and both teams still have not addressed whether the national anthem policy will be followed.

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