INDIANAPOLIS, IN - JULY 18: Indiana Fever center-forward Aliyah Boston 7 reacts to the call in the second half of play during a WNBA, Basketball Damen, USA game between the New York Liberty and the Indiana Fever on July 18, 2026 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN. Photo by Jeffrey Brown/Icon Sportswire WNBA: JUL 18 New York Liberty at Indiana Fever EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon071826029

"Can't Make Those": Aliyah Boston questions Sandy Brondello despite Angel Reese apology

Jul 25, 2026, 9:16 PM CUT

The "protected species" comment by Toronto Tempo's head coach Sandy Brondello for Atlanta Dream's Angel Reese was last week's biggest storyline in the WNBA. A week later, Fever's center Aliyah Boston has addressed the controversy.

On Wednesday, July 23, Boston sat with WNBA legend Candace Parker for another episode of their podcast. The Fever star also questioned the WNBA coach not understanding "racial slurs."

"You can't make those. You can't," she said on the Post Moves podcast.

CHICAGO, IL - APRIL 29: CHICAGO, IL - APRIL 29: Angel Reese 5 of the Atlanta Dream looks on during the first half against the Chicago Sky on April 29, 2026 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois. Photo by Melissa Tamez/Icon Sportswire WNBA, Basketball Damen, USA APR 29 Preseason Atlanta Dream against the Chicago Sky EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon260429012

Brondello made the controversial comment during the July 17 game between the Dream and the Tempo. Since then, the league suspended Brondello for one game without pay. Brondello later apologized and defended herself, saying that it was a phrase in Australia.

Boston's stark rejection echoed the league's swift one-game suspension of Brondello.

"We're not going to go for intent. We're going to go for what actually was said and holding those people accountable," Parker added on Wednesday's episode of Post Moves.

During a play in the last minutes of the fourth quarter in last Friday’s game, Tempo’s Nyara Sabally was called for a defensive foul on Reese. Sabally fell to the floor, immediately requiring medical attention.

While Brondello watched her player on the floor, she yelled at the referee, Toni Patillo, that Reese was a “protected species."

Reese called out the Tempo head coach on social media. She wrote, "Are we surprised?" and tagged Brondello with a clown emoji.

Before the Chicago Sky game on Sunday, July 19, Reese again addressed Brondello's apology and the comment.

Angel Reese addresses Sandy Brondello's apology

Brondello had said that she had reached out to the league, the Dream team, and Reese herself. On Sunday, Reese accepted Brondello's apology while speaking to the reporters.

"First, I appreciate Sandy’s apology, but I also appreciate the love and support that I’ve had for the last 48 hours,” she said before the Dream played the Sky. "It has been very overwhelming with a lot of love and also other things. But I am grateful that the league did take action."

The WNBA was proactive in taking proper action against Brondello, announcing the suspension the next day. Reese also received a lot of support on social media since the comment.

"There is no place for discrimination or hate in this league from anyone, from fans to coaches to players. The WNBA is supposed to be positive, and we are going in a great light right now. So I just want to continue that and move forward," Reese added.

The league has seen an unprecedented upward direction in the last few years. However, stories outside basketball have also become overwhelming.

Perhaps it is a normal course before the league solidifies itself. But controversies have been a big distraction for the WNBA.

Do you think the WNBA is handling these off-court controversies the right way? What are your thoughts on this?

Written by

Nandjee Ranjan

Edited by

Utsav Gupta