NBA players are reacting to the playoff games that have been cancelled in response to Jacob’s Blake nearly fatal shooting.
On Wednesday (Aug. 25), the Milwaukee Bucks announced they would be boycotting game 5 against the Orlando Magic.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN explained the players had ultimately made the decision to remain in their locker rooms during the game.
Not too long after, it was announced the Oklahoma City Thunders and the Houston Rockets were also boycotting, and the Los Angeles Lakers and Portland Trail Blazers would not be playing game 5 of their games.
Fellow NBA players have been showing their support for their fellow athletes’ decisions.
“Proud of our players,” retired NBA star Dwyane Wade tweeted.
Lakers’ own LeBron James tweeted in response to the boycotts.
“FUCK THIS MAN!!!! WE DEMAND CHANGE. SICK OF IT,” he wrote.
Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks shared his thoughts about being in a league that is doing their part to demand change.
“Proud to be apart of this League… even more today ! WE WANT CHANGE,” he wrote in his tweet.
Celtics player Enes Kanter penned in a tweet, “We need CHANGE. Change can NOT wait.”
LaMarcus Alridge of the San Antonio Spurs saluted the players with a simple “Respect,” followed by a fist emoji.
His teammate Demar DeRozan hopped on social media to express his support for the teams who decided to boycott their playoff games.
“This shit bigger than basketball! Whoever don’t understand that is part of the problem,” he tweeted.
The NBA boycotts come a day after Raptors players Norman Powell and Fred VanVleet used their press calls to let reporters know the Toronto-based team were having conversations about sitting out of the games following Blake’s shooting.
“What are we willing to give up? Do we actually give a fuck about what’s going on?” VanVleet asked while venting his frustrations.
Powell also expressed that nothing would change until he and the other NBA players “stand up and demand things.”