The NBA playoffs were put on hold Wednesday, August 26, as players chose to boycott the three games to protest the recent police shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin.
The Milwaukee Bucks sparked the movement, deciding not to come out of the locker room for their Game 5 matchup against the Orlando Magic. The other teams on the schedule soon began to make similar decisions, including LeBron James’ Los Angeles Lakers.
As the day progressed, it quickly became evident that the entire season could be called off as players took a stance for social justice. James was in the spotlight as a major catalyst during a meeting involving all the teams in the bubble, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
Sources: Every team besides Lakers and Clippers voted to continue playing. LeBron James said in meeting he want owners to be more involved/take action.
The Lakers and Clippers were the only teams to vote in favor of boycotting the rest of the season, and Yahoo! senior NBA writer Vincent Goodwill tweeted that James “stormed out” of the meeting out of frustration, although there are conflicting reports. Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times said James and Clippers star Kawhi Leonard were “adamant” that they did not want to finish out the season, despite their teams being favorites for the title.
Sources: Lakers forward LeBron James and Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard both spoke up in the players meeting Wednesday night and were adamant about not playing the rest of the playoffs and they wanted change. The players will have another meeting at 11 am East time Thursday.
Clay Travis: LeBron James Trying to ‘Outwoke’ Rest of NBA
Frequent James opponent and Outkick founder Clay Travis took the opportunity to call out the four-time MVP.
“I don’t buy Lakers or Clippers, two teams that can actually win a title, quitting. LeBron is just trying to outwoke the rest of the NBA. Clear negotiation ploy. Owners will kick in more money for [social justice warrior] causes & players will claim boycott had a positive impact & go back to playing,” Travis wrote on Twitter. “At this point players have to be able to claim some sort of victory for their boycott. Otherwise they just go back to playing & boycott looks even more ridiculous. Enter the owners, I’m sorry governors, ponying up more money for SJW issues.”
At this point players have to be able to claim some sort of victory for their boycott. Otherwise they just go back to playing & boycott looks even more ridiculous. Enter the owners, I’m sorry governors, ponying up more money for SJW issues.
It’s not the first time Travis has been critical of James and it won’t be the last. He said recently that James was “destroying the NBA.”
“LeBron’s legacy is going to be that he destroyed the NBA in the United States of America,” Travis said in a rant posted to his Twitter account. “The ratings for the NBA are collapsing in LeBron James’s NBA.”
James has been a force for change in many ways off the basketball court. Most notably, he helped create “More Than a Vote,” a nonprofit organization devoted to supporting Black voters, and opened the “I Promise School,” a public school in his native Akron, Ohio, for at-risk students. James spoke on police brutality during the George Floyd protests and shared his thoughts on the police shooting of Jacob Blake on August 24 following the Lakers’ Game 4 victory.
FUCK THIS MAN!!!! WE DEMAND CHANGE. SICK OF IT
“Everyone has their opinion and reaction to what happened,” James said:
I still have a job to do because I’m here. Because I committed. And when I commit to something, I feel like I have to come through. That’s just who I am. But that does not mean that I don’t see what’s going on and I won’t say anything or continue to use my platform, continue to use my voice and continue to uplift all of the other athletes to let them know that they can say and do what’s right and not fear what other people’s opinions are. … I got half of my brain locked in on the playoffs and the other half locked in on how the hell I can help Black people become greater in America.
Former New York Police Commissioner Challenges James
James’ words caught the attention of Bernard Kerik, former commissioner of the New York Police Department, who called out the Lakers star on Twitter.
“You should not comment or criticize when you have no idea what the job is, nor would you have the courage to do it. I’d challenge [LeBron James] to handcuff someone the refuses to comply, or spend a day in a firearms simulations training center?”
You should not comment or criticize when you have no idea what the job is, nor would you have the courage to do it. I’d challenge @KingJames to handcuff someone the refuses to comply, or spend a day in a firearms simulations training center?
Thursday Should Give a Clearer Picture on NBA’s Future
The conversation is far from over, with more meetings scheduled for Thursday morning, August 27, that should help the NBA decide where to go from here. The NBA’s Board of Governors and players are set to meet separately at 11 a.m. to discuss the next steps, per ESPN.
Lakers owner Jeanie Buss was among the more vocal supporters during the historic day.
“I was excited to see us play – and hopefully close out our series – tonight. But I stand behind our players, today and always,” Buss wrote on Twitter. “After more than 400 years of cruelty, racism and injustice, we all need to work together to say enough is enough. #JusticeForJacobBlake #WeHearYou.”
I was excited to see us play – and hopefully close out our series – tonight. But I stand behind our players, today and always. After more than 400 years of cruelty, racism and injustice, we all need to work together to say enough is enough. #JusticeForJacobBlake #WeHearYou
Multiple reports and rumblings point to it being unlikely that Thursday’s multiple playoff games featuring the Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors, Denver Nuggets, Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks and Clippers will be played.
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Analyst Rips LeBron James for Stance on NBA Boycott