"She needs to be better in answering" - Breanna Stewart presses Cathy Engelbert on handling 'racism' questions in WNBA

Earlier this week, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert made an appearance on CNBC's Power Lunch show. During the interaction, she was asked the league's efforts against things like racism and homophobia.

The way Breanna Stewart sees things, Engelbert's response, in which she spoke about the Caitlin Clark & Angel Reese rivalry, wasn't enough.

Heading into the weekend, Stewart spoke with WNBA reporter Jackie Powell about the situation. As she explained, the fact that Engelbert is taking accountability is good, however, the league and its players need her to be better in the future:

"She needs to be better in answering her questions and making sure that you're always ready for what's being asked, because as players, we're in the same boat and situation. We're always ready for what's going to be asked, and making sure that we're representing the W, ourselves and our families as best we can."

Immediately following Engelbert's comments on Monday, WNBA players around the league were quick to call out the commissioner for not taking a harsh stance against racism and homophobia. In addition, fans took to social media, criticizing Cathy Engelbert for seemingly whiffing on a lob right down the middle of the plate.

In response to the criticism, Engelbert sent a letter to players around the league, apologizing for her response. In addition, she also spoke with Breanna Stewart on the phone earlier in the week after the latter weighed in on the commissioner's TV blunder. This was following the Liberty's win over the Dallas Wings on Tuesday.

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"The thing I appreciate the most is accountability" - Breanna Stewart weighs in on how Cathy Engelbert has responded to criticism

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert's comments, or lack thereof, about how the league stays ahead of racism and homophobia drew a slew of criticism. In addition to the adverse comments from fans on social media, WNBPA executive director Terri Jackson released a statement the following day.

As she explained, Engelbert and the league not taking a strong stance on the harassment players receive puts the onus on players to check fans and critics alike.

While teams like the Chicago Sky use an all-new AI program called The Net that filters out hateful comments on social media in real time, the league is yet to take steps.

On Friday, amid the criticism from fans and players, Cathy Engelbert sent a letter to players which was relayed by ESPN and various other media outlets. In it, she admitted that she should have done better to denounce the racism and harassment that players have received.

In addition, as previously mentioned, Engelbert spoke with Breanna Stewart and several other players via phone to discuss the situation. The way the Liberty star sees things, Engelbert's willingness to take accountability is important.

As she explained while speaking with Jackie Powell:

"I feel like between that (the phone call) and the letter, the thing that I appreciate the most is accountability, you know.

"Understanding what you did or didn't say and how wrong that is because you didn't kind of check people at the door. And so that here in this league, there is a no tolerance policy for all things, but especially racism."

In her letter to players, Engelbert made it clear that racism and homophobia have no place in the W.