NBA players questioned playing games in the Disney bubble following the video of police shootingJacob Blake .- Fred VanVleet and Normal Powell of the
Toronto Raptors said their team discussed a boycott of Game 1 of their second-round playoff series against theBoston Celtics . - VanVleet, Powell, and members of the Celtics said the NBA's messages of
social justice reform and racial equality haven't worked.
The police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man in Kenosha, Wisconsin, resurfaced concerns among NBA players about games distracting from the fight for racial equality.
The NBA's plan to play in a bubble at Walt Disney World came amid nationwide unrest following the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. Many NBA players said they wanted to focus on social justice reform, with some players arguing against resuming play, fearing it would be a distraction to the Black Lives Matter movement.
After the video went viral of police shooting Blake in the back as he attempted to get into a car, several NBA players lamented playing games in the bubble and unable to leave.
On Tuesday, Toronto Raptors guards Norman Powell and Fred VanVleet suggested a potential boycott of Game 1 between the Raptors and Boston Celtics.
"It's been talked about," Powell said in response to a question about whether a boycott has been discussed within the Raptors. "There's a lot of things that are being talked about in how to approach this sensitive issue ... Taking a knee for the anthem, that's not getting the job done. It's starting to get washed out."
The NBA and its players agreed on plans to try to keep the message of social justice reform in the forefront while in the bubble. The courts in the bubble all say "Black Lives Matter," while players put league-approved messages about social justice on the back of their jerseys. Players have also kneeled during the national anthem, while many have used their media time to speak about social justice topics.
"We knew coming here or not coming here was not going to stop anything, but I think ultimately playing or not playing puts pressure on somebody," VanVleet told reporters.
"So, for example, this happened in Kenosha, Wisconsin, if I'm correct? Would it be nice if, in a perfect world, we all say we're not playing, and the owner of the Milwaukee Bucks — that's going to trickle down. If he steps up to the plate and puts pressure on the district attorney's office, and state's attorney, and governors, and politicians there to make real change and get some justice.
"I know it's not that simple. But, at the end of the day, if we're gonna sit here and talk about making change, then at some point we're gonna have to put our nuts on the line and actually put something up to lose, rather than just money or visibility."
Celtics guard Marcus Smart said his team had not formally discussed a boycott but said the gestures players were making in the bubble weren't furthering their cause.
"We tried to be peaceful, kneeling, we tried to protest," Smart said. "And for us, we tried to come out here and get together and play this game and try to get our voice across. But it's not working, so obviously something has to be done."Right now, our focus shouldn't really be on basketball. I understand it's the playoffs and everything like that, but we still have a bigger underlying issue that's going on, and the things that we've tried haven't been working."
Milwaukee Bucks guard George Hill said on Monday that players shouldn't be in the bubble, arguing it detracts from their goals of social justice reform.
"We can't do anything [from Orlando]," Hill told reporters. "First of all, we shouldn't have even came to this damn place, to be honest. I think coming here just took all the focal points off what the issues are."
Hill added: "We're down here playing in the bubble to do these things for social justice and all that, and to see it all still going on and we're just playing the games like it's nothing, it's just a really messed up situation right now."
Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell retweeted the video of Blake getting shot on Monday, saying "F THE GAMES AND PLAYOFFS!!!"
—Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) August 24, 2020
Celtics forward Jaylen Brown on Tuesday said it was difficult to practice. Brown, who has used many of his media sessions to discuss social justice reform, criticized the police officers' handling of the incident with Blake.
"I'm just happy by the grace of God that Jacob Blake is still alive, because the police who shot him, that wasn't their intention. They shot him to kill him, and that's a problem in this country," Brown said. "There's a million different ways you could have dissolved that situation, and your thought was to kill him. That was the best method."
Game 1 of the Raptors-Celtics series is scheduled for Thursday, August 27.
"At what point do we not have to speak about it anymore? Are we gonna hold everybody accountable, or we're just gonna put the spotlight on Black people, or Black athletes, or entertainers and say, 'What are you doing? What are you contributing to your community? What are you putting on the line?'" VanVleet said on Tuesday.
"And then us, too, we've gotta take responsibility as well. Like, what are we willing to give up? Do we actually give a f--- about what's going on, or is it just cool to wear 'Black Lives Matter' on the backdrop, or wear a T-shirt? Like, what does that really mean? Is it really doing anything?"
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