..more from above
quote:
Dramatic escalation
The NBA postponements marked a dramatic escalation in the league’s calls for racial justice, which have reverberated across the sport in the months since the killing of unarmed black man George Floyd by Minneapolis police in May.
Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James voiced solidarity with the decision in a tweet shortly after the Bucks boycott.
“WE DEMAND CHANGE. SICK OF IT,” James wrote.
The NBA’s players union also backed the protest. “The players have, once again, made it clear – they will not be silent on this issue,” National Basketball Players Association executive director Michele Roberts said in a statement.
At an emergency meeting of NBA teams in Florida late Wednesday, the crisis threatened to put the entire season in jeopardy, with LeBron James’ Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers both voting to abandon the season. All other teams voted to continue.
It was not immediately clear whether the Lakers and Clippers would continue the season as scheduled.
A walkout by two of the NBA’s strongest teams and title contenders – as well as its biggest star – would deal a devastating blow to the credibility of the season. The NBA’s Board of Governors is meeting on Thursday to address player concerns.
A renewed wave of anger had swept the NBA after Sunday’s shooting of Blake.