Why the NBA's long-standing anthem rule tests league's name
Talk about burying the lede.
If you scroll down a bit on the NBA’s latest memo about US national anthem protests – the one that was sent to general managers and team presidents on Friday under the subject line, “Next Steps: Building Stronger, Safer Communities” – the part that matters most starts at the 359th word.
Underneath all those suggestions on how to spark positive change without taking a knee, in this message that came just one day after commissioner Adam Silver shared similar sentiments at a Board of Governor’s meeting in New York, it’s that 13th paragraph which hits you like a hard pick.
The most progressive sports league of them all, it’s quite clear, is navigating some tricky waters as the season nears.
“These are difficult and nuanced issues,” deputy commissioner Mark Tatum wrote. “We support and encourage players to express their views on matters that are important to them.” Then one line later… “The NBA has a rule that players, coaches and trainers stand respectfully for the anthem,” Tatum continues. “The league office will determine how to deal with any possible instance in which a player, coach or trainer does not stand for the anthem. (Teams do not have the discretion to waive this rule).”
Yet with the anthem watch set to begin with the preseason tipping off this week, and with so many NFL players having set a strong new standard on this front while their embattled commissioner, Roger Goodell, surprised many by supporting their cause, here’s the problem with the NBA’s position: Players who are fed up with racial inequality, or who want to send a message of disapproval to President Trump as a response to his divisive ways, aren’t truly free to be heard so long as this rule is being held over their heads.
The rule itself, which was instituted before Silver entered the league 25 years ago, is causing the quandary here (the NFL, for the record, has a policy that teams can enforce, but the league has no such rule).
Had Silver decided on Thursday to take the reformist route, abolishing the rule which states that players should “stand in a dignified posture” for the anthem, then an immense pressure would have grown for the NBA masses – and especially African-American players – to take a knee.
It’s a nuanced notion that shouldn’t be discounted.
What’s more, team officials the league over were looking for guidance on how to handle the issue – thus, Silver’s speech and the memo.
So Silver tried to split the screen, acknowledging the importance of the player voice while also highlighting the reality of the rule’s existence.
But there’s a body of work here that can’t be forgotten. This is the same commissioner who handed former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling a lifetime ban in April 2014 after his racist views were exposed.
This is the same commissioner who has always earned respect from the game’s biggest stars, forging real relationships with players like LeBron James, Steph Curry, Chris Paul and so many others. This is the same commissioner who moved the 2017 All-Star game out of Charlotte because of its discriminatory LGBT laws, and who chose not to fine players for the dress code violation in 2014 when they wore “I Can’t Breathe” shirts as a way of honoring Eric Garner. A tone-deaf tyrant, he is not. As my colleague, Jeff Zillgitt, wrote, the smart money says that Silver won’t fine players if they do take a knee. If he does, then the goodwill built up with players over these past four years will be gone.
To that end, National Basketball Players Association executive director Michele Roberts told The New York Times on Friday that “To borrow Silver’s words: If discipline is imposed on a player, we too will deal with it.”
If a fine doesn’t come, then the conversation about whether the rule should remain should unofficially begin. In these black and white times, only time will tell if the NBA can find its way through the gray.