Thus far, the NBA has been a leader among professional sports leagues in North America in supporting the concerns of its Black and other players of color as the league has tried to navigate finishing a season amidst not just a pandemic but also one of the most racially-fraught political moments in the U.S. in generations.
But will they continue to be if it ends up costing them games?
Exactly this idea is on the table as the Boston Celtics and Toronto Raptors have been meeting to discuss how they should address the shooting of Jacob Blake, according to The Undefeated’s Marc Spears.
Celtics forward Jaylen Brown and Raptors guard Fred VanVleet spoke at the meeting last night.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) August 26, 2020
Blake, a Black man from Kenosha, Wisconsin, was shot by police in front of his children seven times in the back after breaking up a fight between two women on Sunday, reigniting national protests over police violence towards Blacks and minorities in the United States.
It has also prompted a number of public responses from NBA players, with many questioning whether they should be playing basketball at all in light of what is facing the world and their communities.
To that end, the Celtics and Raptors players met to discuss their plans on a response, up to and perhaps even beyond boycotting their Game 1 of the two teams’ playoff series set to begin Thursday evening.
Boston’s Jaylen Brown speaks on the shooting of Jacob Blake https://t.co/UwAJcXEQTT
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) August 25, 2020
Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes reports players have been in contact with the National Basketball Players’ Union regarding the ramifications of boycotting games.
Spears relates Boston’s Jaylen Brown and Toronto’s Fred Van Vleet as two players who spoke to the teams on Wednesday evening.
Per Spears, the two teams’ players will meet again tonight to discuss their plans further — check back regularly for updates on this developing story.
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