WNBL Anneli Maley claims Andrew Bogut followers turned up at her house over transgender player

Australian Opals star Anneli Maley has accused Andrew Bogut’s social media followers of “showing up at his house” as he continues to spark debate about a transgender player.

Lexi Rodgers was revealed Wednesday as the transgender woman who will play in the second-tier NBL1 South women’s league this season.

Controversial Australian basketball legend Andrew Bogut continues to refer to Rodgers as a “biological man” and is openly critical of any player or fan who speaks up for her.

That has since taken a dark turn, with Maley revealing Rodgers’ identity on his podcast. Under the surfacealleging that supporters of the outspoken NBA champion even showed up at her home or threatened her with physical violence.

‘People following you showed up at MY HOUSE. I got hundreds of physical threats,’ the WNBL MVP from last season wrote in a social media post calling out Bogut.

Maley, along with teammate Marena Whittle, Saraid Taylor and Chloe Bibby, was one of many players speaking out in support of a transgender player competing on NBL1 South this season, despite Bogut saying Rodgers playing would “violate the sanctity of women’s sport”.

As Bogut’s supporters flooded into social media abuse that players described as “transphobic”, Maley invited Bogut to discuss the issue in a public forum so she could “educate” him about what it was like to be a transgender woman.

They were all set to appear on Bogut’s Rogue Bogues podcast alongside staunch transgender critic Katherine Deves, before Maley pulled out, citing safety concerns.

But that excuse didn’t work with an enraged Bogut, who fired a withering spray at the Australian representative, whom he accused of playing ‘the victim’, calling her a liar.

“She (Maley) unsurprisingly dropped out days before taping,” he wrote in his social media post, where he linked to his podcast episode with Deves.

‘Now we find out that people have come to her house to threaten her? Hmmm, I hope you filed a police report, Anneli.

‘I would suggest calling the Ghostbusters though, they will be better suited to finding the people who ‘came to your house’.

This is almost always the problem. The louder types of activists can sit on social media and hurl insults like ‘Nazi, transphobic, uneducated, bigot, etc.

‘The moment they are asked to have a discussion something always ‘comes up’ and they cannot attend. I think they realize that calling out the names above won’t work very well during a long discussion.

Maley said he was “speechless” with Bogut doubling down on the criticism, accusing him of threatening his safety by engaging in such a public fight, which his social media followers latched onto and used against him.

“I decided not to have a conversation with you because after a few social media posts I wasn’t sure,” Maley wrote in response.

‘You were aware of this, but have decided to call me rather than encourage people following you not to threaten a woman.

“I am having a public conversation with someone (Rodgers) … but not with someone who is endangering my personal safety.

You have no idea what it’s like to be a woman who receives physical threats from grown men.

‘I don’t need to justify my experience to you or any man who questions my experience.’

An inherent irony became apparent when Deves and Bogut alleged that there were “girls, women, parents, volunteers, referees and coaches too scared to come forward” about a transgender woman playing games, while at the same time attempting to silence several “women’s sport” athletes. ‘ that they were trying to ‘save’.

For his part, Maley just wanted to put a face to the name by revealing, alongside Rodgers, exactly who was the face caught in the middle of an increasingly ugly war on social media.

“It’s nice to have a bit of a voice, now, because, when it comes to this hypothetical person and people are making a picture of what a transgender athlete looks like in their head, 1: I don’t think it’s me, and, 2: I think it’s a little harsh and people forget that there’s actually a person,” Rodgers said on Maley’s podcast.

“If you don’t get it and you don’t know 1: don’t yell things on the internet about it because it’s probably wrong, and 2: go and learn about it.”

Rodgers then urged her critics to remember that the debate affected “real people”: She is not some faceless athlete that anyone can troll online.

‘Please be kind. It has been a difficult week, so try to remember that there are real people who are affected by these discussions and these debates,” she said.

Like many young people (studies say more than 40 percent of trans youth have considered attempting suicide), Rodgers, who has always been a talented basketball player, bottled up his feelings.

She revealed that he had first felt feminine tendencies as a teenager before transitioning during Covid, when she went through a relationship breakup and a terminal cancer diagnosis for her mother.

Now, after giving up basketball in her teens, she harbors hopes of representing at the highest level, with the WNBL and potential Australian national team, the Opals.

It was overwhelming. It was such a quick switch from, ‘Oh, I’m going to be a more girly guy,’ to, ‘I’m trans, there’s no question about it,'” she said.

‘Going into women’s basketball has been very good because unfortunately I didn’t know many of you before.

“But now, watching you (Maley) play, and watching people like Cayla (George, reigning MVP), Mon Conti (WNBL and AFLW star) play, that’s where I want to be, that’s where I want to be.”

Sensationally, Bogut has now claimed that there is a conspiracy in Australia when it comes to transgender women participating in women’s sports.

“The interesting thing is that a lot of leagues try to cover up all of this. Take, for example, Australia’s soccer. The main goal kickers in various leagues are biological men. The leagues will not publish the names of the players and will try to hide the fact, ”he stated on Twitter.

Basketball Australia has convened a panel to assess whether Rodgers is eligible to play in the NBL1 South this season and will make a decision in the coming days.