A WNBA game between the Los Angeles Sparks and Atlanta Dream was halted when a green dildo was thrown onto the court during free throws.
Sparks forward Jihyun Park had just begun dribbling at the free-throw line when the bright green object landed on the floor, forcing officials to stop play immediately.
Atlanta Dream star Angel Reese was seen pointing toward the person who threw the object. Play-by-play announcer Mike Watts noted during the broadcast that arena security "made quick work of this" as the perpetrator was presumed to have been escorted out of the building.
The disruption revives memories of last season, when the Women's National Basketball Association was impacted by a wave of incidents involving sex toys thrown onto courts as projectiles. Those previous stunts appeared to have some involvement in promoting a meme cryptocurrency, though it is unclear whether this latest incident carries a similar connection.
Previous WNBA court disruptions and player impact
Some of the events last season resulted in players being directly hit, including Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham. The recurring incidents led to venue bans and criminal arrests for several individuals involved.
Exactly one year prior, on August 21, 2025, a 32-year-old Ohio man identified as Charles Burgess was arrested after throwing a sex toy during a New York Liberty game that struck a 12-year-old girl.
Earlier in August 2025, 18-year-old Kaden Lopez was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, assault, and public display of explicit sexual material after throwing a sex toy onto the court during a game between the Connecticut Sun and Phoenix Mercury. Another man, 23-year-old Delbert Carver, was arrested for throwing sex toys onto the floor at two separate WNBA games.
League reaction and coach statements
At the time of last season's wave of incidents, players and coaches expressed strong outrage, including Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve.
"I just want to comment on... this has been going on for centuries," Reeve said. "The sexualization of women, this is the latest version of that. It's not funny."
Reeve emphasized that the actions should not be minimized or treated as comedy.
"It should not be a butt of jokes on any radio show, or in print, or in any comments," Reeve said. "The sexualization of women is what's used to hold women down and this is no different."
"This is just the latest story, and we should write about it in that way," Reeve added. "These people that are doing this should be held accountable. We're not the butt of the joke. They're the problem, and we need to take action."
