Just hours after the Milwaukee Bucks and Orland Magic decided not to play game five of their first-round playoff series, the Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Lakers and Portland Trailblazers decided to postpone their games as well. Not long after making their decision the Washington Mystics and Atlanta Dream decided not to play tonight either. In support of this growing movement, former NBA player Kenny “The Jet” Smith walked off the set of NBA on TNT in support of these actions.
“As a Black man and as a former player, I think it’s best for me to not be here tonight,” he said before walking off the set.
Kenny Smith just walked out on NBA on TNT in support of the players' boycott pic.twitter.com/N4Ix6CPTLG
— Chris Montano (@gswchris) August 26, 2020
Instead of continuing with hours of playoff coverage as previously scheduled, the network shifted to ending the broadcast. They then pivoted to re-airing older movies.
Not long after basketball games were postponed, the Seattle Mariners and San Diego Padres boycotted their regular-season game.
All of these actions are in response to the ongoing issue of police violence against Black Americans. Most recently, a man in Kenosha, Wisconsin named Jacob Blake was shot several times as he got into his car with his kids. Blake was unarmed at the time and had just finished breaking up a fight nearby. Blake did survive the attack, but he is reportedly paralyzed from the waste down.
