NBA sends strong message
Bianchi: Players, coaches and refs kneel on historic night.
This historic, euphoric night was not just the restart of the NBA season; it was an affirmation of the NBA’s stated commitment to turn this entire experiment into a massive public-service announcement it supports racial and social justice.
Being in a mostly empty gym in the middle of a mostly barren Orlando theme park Thursday night for the first official NBA basketball game in exactly 141 days was exciting, emotional, surreal and, admittedly, a little sad, too. Sad because we’ve all been through so much since the NBA season was shut down nearly five months ago and, yet, we still have so far to go.
We’ve been through pandemics, economic shutdowns, protests and political unrest. And, oh, by the way, there’s a potential hurricane that could be headed our way, too.
The NBA can’t do anything about tropical storms, but give the league credit for doing its part to help find solutions to the other serious issues in our nation right now. The NBA’s health and safety protocols inside the Disney World bubble have been impeccably implemented and should be a model for other sports leagues. And make no mistake about it, the league has more than kept its promise in doing its part to help cure our country’s racial, social and political ills.
That became apparent from the moment the New Orleans Pelicans and the Utah Jazz took the floor Thursday night wearing “Black Lives Matter” warmups and kneeling around the “Black Lives Matter” wording near center court as the national anthem was played. Players, coaches and even the refs took a knee. It was not only a powerful message of solidarity in the wake of George Floyd’s killing; it
was an indignant message as well.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver obviously has waived the NBA’s longtime rule that players on the court are required to stand for the national anthem. It’s no secret the reason the NBA has forbidden its mostly Black players from kneeling in the past is because the gesture rankles many of the leagues mostly white fans.
The message the NBA sent on Thursday was loud and clear: What’s going on in our country right now is bigger than the league’s bottom line. Memo to Silver: It sure would be nice if the NBA took a similar stance toward what’s going on in China, but that’s a column for another day.
When Orlando’s Aaron Gordon was asked recently about the Magic perhaps kneeling during the national anthem when they play their first game Friday, he replied: “Some people frown upon kneeling during the national anthem — and we frown upon kneeling on other people’s necks … and not allowing people to breathe.”
The Magic are one of 22 teams participating in the NBA restart at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Disney and there are a zillion story lines: Will LeBron and the Lakers clash with Kawhi and the Clippers in the Western Conference finals? Can marquee rookie Zion Williamson make a playoff push? Can Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo go from league MVP to NBA champion?
However, the NBA has made sure that No. 1 story line remains social justice and racial equality. It seems almost laughable now that there was actually a school of thought among some players a few weeks ago that resuming the season and playing basketball would distract from the cause.
Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. With the NBA’s visibility, star power and massive media exposure, it has given its players an enormous platform they would have never had if they were at home right now.
Just look at what the Magic have been doing in Orlando leading up to the re-start. CEO Alex Martins has formed an internal social justice task force to address everything from staff education to hiring practices and recruitment to minority business initiatives.
The Magic have engaged with groups such as the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, Let Your
Voice Be Heard, the Central Florida Urban League and the African American Chamber of Commerce of Central Florida.
To begin a recent Zoom media session, Gordon was one of several Magic players to say Breonna Taylor deserves justice while asking for the police officers involved her death to be arrested.
As a team, Magic players and coaches got off the bus when they arrived on the Disney campus wearing “Get Off The Bench. Get Into The Game, VOTE” T-shirts as way to encourage fans to vote. They also produced a poignant social justice video called “Walk With Us.”
Point guard Michael Carter-Williams joined Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings and Sheriff John Mina for a virtual town hall meeting for area youth. Magic coach Steve Clifford has taped publicservice announcements and is often seen wearing a “Coaches for Racial Justice” pin.
Now take what the Magic have done and multiply that by the 22 teams that have shown up for the NBA’s restart. Everywhere you look at Disney, there is social justice messaging. Everybody you talk to is doing something, wearing something or saying something about the racial unrest and injustice in our country.
Look over there, it’s a “Black Lives Matter” flag flapping in the wind as you enter the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.
Look over there, it’s Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma tweeting out a request to the media to ask players more questions about social justice.
Look over there, it’s legendary San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich wearing a shirt that says, “Vote: Your life depends on it.”
“You have to figure out where you’re at as a person,” Magic coach Steve Clifford says. “For me right now, this is not a time to be neutral. … I’m probably like a lot of people, where there have been things that have bothered me in the past but — in self-reflection looking back — I never did a lot to make it any better. I’m determined now to be part of that positive change.” So far, so good, Coach. It was fun to finally see NBA games return Thursday night, but it was even better seeing an entire sport stand up, er, kneel down for something much bigger than basketball.