Apparently kneeling during the National Anthem isn’t enough for these rich entitled NBA players.
Now, they’ve decided as a group to boycott playing at all!
And in response, the NBA has decided to postpone the playoff games.
Here’s the details on the NBA’s decision from the New York Times:
The Milwaukee Bucks responded to the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man in Wisconsin, by refusing to take the court Wednesday afternoon for their N.B.A. playoff game against the Orlando Magic.
An hour later, the N.B.A. postponed two other playoff games scheduled for Wednesday night, thrusting its ambitious restart at Walt Disney World during the coronavirus pandemic into sudden chaos and doubt. The postponed games were first-round playoff matchups pitting the Houston Rockets against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and the Los Angeles Lakers against the Portland Trail Blazers. All three games will be rescheduled.
Players from the N.B.A. and the W.N.B.A. have long been at the forefront of protests against racism and police brutality but especially this year, after the police killings of George Floyd, a Black man in Minnesota, and Breonna Taylor, a Black woman in Kentucky.
Still, the boycott was an extraordinary escalation in the athletes’ demonstrations, a move that had virtually no precedent in the league’s history. It was quickly followed by the Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds deciding to sit out their Major League Baseball game scheduled for Wednesday night in Wisconsin. Players for the W.N.B.A.’s Washington Mystics arrived for their game against the Atlanta Dream on Wednesday night wearing T-shirts that spelled out Jacob Blake.
On Sunday, the police in Kenosha, Wis., shot Blake, 29, in the back several times as he tried to get into his vehicle.
In the days since, numerous N.B.A. players have openly debated the wisdom of continuing to play, questioning whether the platform provided by the league’s return was amplifying their message — or, rather, taking attention from the broader social justice movement.
The question remains, do these players expect to still be paid?
The answer should be, no play, no pay!
Fox News reports that the NBA will hold a league-wide meeting tonight on the boycotts:
The NBA will hold a league-wide meeting on Wednesday night after players opted to boycott a trio of playoff games to protest the police-involved shooting of Jacob Blake, according to a report.
League officials have invited all players to participate in the meeting inside the NBA’s bubble environment at Walt Disney World resort in Orlando, ESPN reported. The meeting is expected to focus on how the league will proceed after the boycott.
The meeting could have major implications for the remainder of the NBA’s season restart. One player told ESPN that the "season is in jeopardy."
The NBA announced the postponement of all three of its scheduled playoff games on Wednesday night after the Milwaukee Bucks opted not to take the floor for their game against the Orlando Magic. All three games are expected to be rescheduled.
Blake, a Black man, was shot multiple times during an encounter with police in Kenosha, Wis. The shooting was caught on video and prompted several days of protests.
According to ESPN analysts, the entire season might be in trouble:
How about these players do their jobs like the rest of us and protest on their own time?
Then again, we can't expect much these days from these out-of-touch celebrity athletes.
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