Category: Politics

Shams: Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter to change last name to ‘Freedom’

He is set to become a US Citizen on Monday.

You might think that “Freedom” is veteran Boston Celtics big man Enes Kanter‘s middle name due to all of the activism of the Turkish center in defense of human rights in his native Turkey, and lately in particular, in China.

But if you did, you would be wrong — but only a little bit, oddly enough. According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, “Freedom” will soon be his last name. Set to become a citizen of the United States of America on Monday, the Celtics center will be known thereafter as “Enes Kanter Freedom” according to Charania in a tweet on Sunday morning.

Kanter has recently stepped up his stance against China and those he believes support their oppressive policies towards ethnic minorities with their borders.

He is even going so far as to publicly critique LeBron James and Michael Jordan for their endorsements of sneaker brands allegedly using forced labor in China to produce them.

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LeBron James reacts to Enes Kanter’s political criticism after Celtics blow out Lakers

The Los Angeles star downplayed Kanter’s critique after the loss.

Boston Celtics reserve center Enes Kanter is making waves with his politics, but his most recent political stance taking Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James to task for his alleged connections to Chinese forced labor camps producing the Nike sneakers James is a spokesperson for has stirred up a little controversy closer to home.

The two did not speak about Kanter’s criticism after the game, but in a post-game press conference, the Lakers star downplayed Kanter’s words. “I think if you know me, you know I don’t give too many people my energy,” James related via USA TODAY’s Analis Bailey. “He’s definitely not someone I would give my energy to. He’s trying to use my name to create an opportunity for himself. I definitely won’t comment too much on that.”

“He’s always had a word or two to say in my direction, and as a man, if you’ve got an issue with somebody, you really come up to him,” he added.

“He had his opportunity tonight. I seen him in the hallway, and he walked right by me.”

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Is Celtics center Enes Kanter benched because of politics? Not so, according to head coach Ime Udoka

The team’s resident activist is simply a victim of a frontcourt glut and a style of play he has not excelled in yet, per coach Ime Udoka.

Most head coaches in the NBA probably would like to have the absence of the sort of distraction that Daryl Morey’s tweet about Hong Kong caused when his Twitter activism sparked a massive firestorm for the Houston Rockets, the team he was the general manager of at the time.

And for Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka, it might indeed be a little easier for him if outspoken big man Enes Kanter was not going after China politically on Twitter himself, but the ecosystem within the NBA for voicing criticism against the Chinese government has much firmer footing now than it did then, even with the Celtics effectively banned in China from being broadcaster as a result of Kanter’s online protests.

The Turkish center has received support in high-profile corners and from his own team in contrast to the kerfuffle that followed Morey, with Udoka picking up his player’s back when asked about the situation after practice Monday.

Boston’s Enes Kanter continues his activism against China’s government, is thanked by Taiwanese president

The outspoken Celtic is unrelenting in his activism.

You might have noticed a lack of playing time for veteran Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter, but the Turkish big man has been keeping busy off the court trying to shine a light on human rights issues in China involving Tibet, Taiwan, and China’s ethnic Uighur population in the western side of the country.

With the Celtics already banned in China as a result of his activism, Kanter doesn’t have much to lose, and has been tearing into the country’s leaders on a near-daily basis. “My message to all freedom supporters watching this today is: We are stronger together. We must all #StandWithTaiwan, support Taiwan, and defend democracy. We must keep Taiwan free and safe,” wrote Kanter in a recent tweet.

Kanter’s activism has not gone unnoticed, with exiled Tibetans and even the president of Taiwan reaching out to Kanter in response to his flurry of posts, videos and other activism.

President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan produced a video in response thanking Kanter for his activism.

“We will always defend our hard-earned freedom and democracy, and the support from you and our friends around the world gives us strength,” Tsai related in a video retweeted by Kanter.

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Celtics icon Kevin Garnett opens up on Floyd protests, Allen feud in new NYT interview

The Big Ticket had some surprising takes on both.

Legendary Boston Celtics big man Kevin Garnett recently sat down with the New York Times’ Sopan Deb for a wide-ranging interview covering everything from KG’s attempt to buy the franchise where he started his NBA career — the Minnesota Timberwolves — to the status quo of his longtime feud with former Celtics teammate Ray Allen after the latter left Boston to join the Miami Heat in free agency in 2012.

It also touches on The Big Ticket’s views on the activism that spread like wildfire after the murder of George Floyd in the summer of 2020 that nearly put the brakes on the NBA’s post-pandemic hiatus restart.

You should read the interview in full, but here is a sampling of some of the more intriguing answers offered up by Garnett.

Boston’s Enes Kanter finds support from Dalai Lama rep. in D.C. for remarks critical of China

The Celtic center’s comments found support in Washington.

Despite getting his team banned from being broadcast in the immediate future in China for his critical comments of that country’s leadership and policies towards Tibet, Boston Celtics big man Enes Kanter‘s outspokenness on those issues did not go unappreciated.

In fact, per ESPN’s William Winetraub, “The rep. for the Dalai Lama/Ofc. of Tibet in Washington expressed thanks … to Enes Kanter for remarks critical of China”. “He summed up the existential threat faced by the Tibetans under Chinese communist rule,” said Ngodup Tsering in a prepared statement shared with ESPN. Kanter had posted a video criticizing China’s policies in Tibet that saw him refer to Chinese President Xi Jinping a “brutal dictator” while saying “basic rights and freedoms are nonexistent” in Tibet.

“We call upon more courageous people like Kanter to speak to the truth,” added Tsering. “We salute Kanter for his courageous act of standing up to a brutal regime.”

“We know Kanter did it at the huge risk to his personal life and career.”

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Celtics games banned in China after Boston’s Enes Kanter criticism of Tibet policies

The outspoken center has drawn the ire of Chinese state media as Philadelphia 76ers Darryl Morey once did with the Houston Rockets.

Fans of the Boston Celtics in China might not be able to see their favorite team for a while due to the comments of one of the franchise’s more outspoken players, according to ESPN News services. That player would be veteran center Enes Kanter, who tweeted a video of himself criticizing the Chinese government ahead of Boston’s season opener against the New York Knicks on Wednesday.

Per ESPN, Chinese state media pulled Celtics games indefinitely as a result of the video, which featured Kanter calling Chinese President Xi Jinping a “brutal dictator” while saying “I’m here to add my voice and speak out about what is happening in Tibet. Under the Chinese government’s brutal rule, Tibetan people’s basic rights and freedoms are nonexistent.”

During the game, Kanter could be seen wearing a shirt with an image of the Dalai Lama (Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader) along with shoes designed by a dissident Chinese artist Badiucao.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin later responded by saying that the Celtics center was “trying to get attention” and that his comments “were not worth refuting.”

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