Gabby Thomas extends support to A'ja Wilson amidst hate for confession about increased criticism of black players

Gabby Thomas extended her support to A'ja Wilson after she spoke about the increasing criticism of black players in the WNBA. Wilson spoke about being in a dilemma on whether to respond to hate comments or to maintain her silence.

The American basketball player spoke about dreading to compete in Indiana and always having her guard up, in an interview with ESPN titled 'WNBA superstar A’ja Wilson, UNFILTERED'. Furthermore, she shed light on the increased criticism of black players in the WNBA and said:

"It's not like we're timid, but it's like you don't want us to do stuff, you just don't want to hear the noise. It strips us from the genuine [happiness] and pureness and love of the game. Just like, "I don't even want to go down this road." I know it's going to be some idiotic person that's going to talk crazy and then I have to continue to take the high road. That gets exhausting."

This brought about a lot of criticism from fans as they discussed the topic on social media. Gabby Thomas took to Instagram to extend her support to Wilson and called out the hate comments. The Paris Olympics gold medalist thanked Wilson for raising her voice on the matter and wrote:

" Comments on this post are wild. Thank you A'ja Wilson for speaking on this."

Gabby Thomas extends her support | Instagram@gabbythomas

Gabby Thomas on supporting black athletes

The Olympic Games-Paris 2024 - Source: Getty

Gabby Thomas spoke about supporting black athletes during the Tokyo Olympics. The American athlete weighed in on the topic of black people boycotting the Olympic games after Sha'Carri Richardson was unable to compete in the quadrennial games due to a one-month suspension after testing positive for marijuana.

She urged the people to rethink their decision and support black athletes, including herself, who have put in years of work to achieve their Olympic dream and compete against the best in the world.

“It really hurts to see so many black people choosing not to watch the Olympics this year. There are so many black athletes who have put in years of hard work for this moment, myself included. We want your support,"she wrote.

Thomas went on to win the first Olympic medal of her career in the women's 200m. She won the bronze medal in the 200m and took home the silver medal in the 4x100m relay in her debut appearance in the quadrennial Games.