The Seattle Storm apologized after one of its co-owners, Celeste Keaton, was accused of making comments to two fans at Tuesday night’s game against the Indiana Fever. The apology came after women at the game said the girls supporting Sophie Cunningham were mocked by both fans and Storm personnel.
That is why the story is drawing attention now. The Storm said it was aware one of its co-owners made comments to two fans in attendance at last night’s game and said everyone who attends a Storm game deserves to feel welcome. It added that it remained committed to creating an inclusive environment where every fan is treated with respect.
Brandi Kruse, an independent journalist, said she sat near the girls in courtside seats on the Storm’s end of the floor and saw how quickly the mood turned. She said fans began booing when the girls stood up for photographs before the game and again between quarters. Kruse also said she witnessed a couple of Storm players direct thumbs-down gestures toward the girls, including one moment when a girl in an XX-XY Athletics shirt danced during a break.
Kruse said she could not identify which players made the gestures, but she did not need a name to describe the effect. One of the 16-year-old girls had texted her that nearby fans were making comments about her shirt and Cunningham. At halftime, Kruse looked across the court and saw the girl sobbing in her front-row seat.
The backdrop matters because Cunningham supporters had held a rally outside Climate Pledge Arena before Tuesday’s game, with several teenage girls in XX-XY Athletics shirts carrying handmade signs thanking Sophie Cunningham. The evening then became a flashpoint over who gets to show support in public at a WNBA game, and the Storm’s apology left one unresolved point hanging: exactly what Celeste Keaton said, and which Storm players made the gestures that girls said they saw.
For now, the team has acknowledged the conduct and offered its apology. What remains unknown is whether the Storm will identify the co-owner or take any further action after a night that ended with one girl in tears and a public message that the organization says every fan should be treated with respect.
