Kelsey Plum did not accost a WNBA fan seeking an autograph outside of the Los Angeles Sparks’ team hotel. She accosted a group of autograph collectors and resellers who, oftentimes, stalk famous athletes (in all different leagues) with the intention of later selling their signatures for a profit.
That may or may not be the case with the person who filmed the latest viral video. He claims not.
Plum, a three-time WNBA All-Star, is one of the most popular players in the league. Her brand is big enough to sign a signature shoe deal. She is one of very few players whose trading card carries value on the resale market. Especially when it is signed.
The 30-year-old was recently filmed outside of the team hotel in Minnesota. Plum was walking from the bus to the front door in street clothes when a group of grown men approached her and her teammates with an open book of trading cards. The book was open to a specific page of five or six different cards. All of the cards are of the specific athlete— in this case, Plum.
There was more than one grown man with the same type of book. Some of their cards have already been signed.
Kelsey Plum was “turned off” by her encounter with a man known on TikTok as “minnygraphs99.” She questioned whether he thought it was weird to wait for the players with a book of autographs outside of the hotel. She called him out for the behavior on camera.
People on the internet immediately began to criticize Plum for acting repulsed by her fans— even though these specific people are not the typical “fans.” He says it is “not true” that he just wants to sell the autographs and asked people not to speak on his behalf. However, his page indicates a history of this kind of interaction. He often waits for players and coaches in public spaces with cards or merchandise and previously shipped “over 3,000” cards on eBay as a reseller. So take of that what you will.
Plum already makes a good point in the viral video. It is weird for a grown man to be waiting outside of a hotel to beg for a signature on a card he may or may not sell, period. This specific interaction gets even more strange with additional context. The criticism should not be directed toward the player.
Dearica Hamby came to the defense of Kelsey Plum. The men waiting for the autographs somehow knew the Los Angeles Sparks actually switched hotels.
There is context to this. We literally left for practice and changed hotels… so to be there the moment we got there after SWITCHING hotels without being like HEY WE’RE SWITCHING HOTELS was weird
— @dearicamarie / X
Yeah, that’s bizarre. Plum was absolutely in the right to question the situation. She at no point took an aggressive stance. She still signed the card.
People love to hate on the WNBA so they took this 23-second video and used it as a reason to turn it back on Plum. In reality, her approach to the interaction was not only warranted but fairly respectful.