The entire country is consumed with the Black Lives Matter movement and its calls for social justice, and professional sports are no exception.
After the shooting of Jacob Blake, on August 23rd, 2020 by the Kenosha Police Department in Wisconsin, NBA teams proceeded to boycott their first-round playoff games. The Milwaukee Bucks decided to not play their game vs. the Orlando Magic and the rest of the league followed suit. Major League Baseball also canceled their respective games and NFL teams canceled practices.
Before the NBA season resumed and players packed their bags for the Orlando bubble, many went out to protest. Damian Lillard and Nassir Little of the Portland Trail Blazers took to the streets and protested. However, the players had to stop due to the strict policies that were put into place for the bubble. Ever since the Orlando bubble started in the final week of July, players did their own to promote Black Lives Matter. The NBA even put the three words on the court itself.
The NBA held a meeting after teams sat out with every team involved. However, according to Shams Charania, it did not go so well as the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers proceeded to walk out, led by a furious LeBron James. The boycotting of games was well known, but what did the players do to promote the movement?
Throughout the seeding games and the playoffs following the league’s absence, NBA players were allowed to have a message on the back of their jerseys with their name under the number. Miami Heat superstar Jimmy Butler tried to have a message on the back of his jersey but the NBA denied it.
The Miami Heat partnered with the Miami Police Department to improve relations between law enforcement and the community. Miami Heat forward Soloman Hill said, “Collectively as the NBA, we’re showing unity. And we hope it spreads to each and everybody that reaches out and watches us while we’re playing in this bubble.”
The Miami Heat also held a “Town Hall” via Zoom to discuss what to do in terms of the movement.
Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Chris Paul led his entire team to register to vote. When speaking with TNT, Chris Paul said, “I’m going to challenge all my NBA guys, and other sports guys, let’s try to get our entire teams registered to vote. It’s a lot of stuff going on in this country. Sports are cool, it’s good and well. It’s how we take care of our families, but those are the real issues that we’ve got to start addressing.”
Many teams around the country either boycotted their games or showed unity to show the significance of Black Lives Matter, and what joining together as one means.
MOOSE PRINTS 