The Houston Rockets wore patches on their jerseys to honor the victims of the school shooting in Santa Fe, Texas, on Thursday nights playoff game against the Golden State Warriors.
The #Rockets will wear a jersey patch in honor of Santa Fe High School tonight. #SantaFeStrong pic.twitter.com/mPfbpMvxzs
— Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) May 24, 2018
The patches on their jerseys read: “Santa Fe HS.” It was one of several tributes the team planed for the victims following Friday’s shooting. Eight students and two teachers died at the school, located 30 miles from downtown Houston.
The school’s high school choir got the chance to perform the national anthem and there was a moment of silence and a video tribute before tipoff.
.@HoustonRockets honored Santa Fe High School and the first responders prior to Game 5. pic.twitter.com/TZdBCyOmGE
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 25, 2018
Santa Fe’s senior class and administrators were all invited to attend the game as guests of owner Tilman Fertitta.
Chris Paul was one of the several NBA players to speak out on the tragedy. Paul implied that something needs to be done to prevent these situations after eight Santa Fe students and two teachers passed away.
“First and foremost aside from the playoffs that’s going on, which is minor compared to what’s taken place down in Santa Fe,”Paul told Sports Illustrated. “Our prayers go out to the victims and the families having to deal with that situation. We have a lot of fan support there, and those people come out and support us night in and night out, so this is very minor compared to what those people are dealing with…It’s scary that that’s becoming the norm here. We got to do something about it because I can’t imagine something like that taking place with my kids.”
Chris Paul: "First and foremost aside from the playoffs that's going on which is minor compared to what's taken place down in Santa Fe. Our prayers go out to the victims and the families…It's scary that that's becoming the norm here. We got to do something about it." pic.twitter.com/TjxeUBANC1
— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) May 18, 2018
The NBA has a lot of advocates for social and political change, whether it be the individual superstars voicing their dissatisfaction with certain situations, or the organization stepping in and helping out like how they did tonight.
