Former NBA big man Meyers Leonard is still hoping to return to the NBA despite not playing since 2021. Around that time on a video game live stream, the NBA big man used an antisemitic slur. Leonard has recently expressed that there was “no excuse” for using the slur, but he does expect to play in the NBA again. The 30-year-old last played for the Miami Heat in January of 2021 and was suspended by the NBA in March of 2021 for the remarks. He underwent ankle surgery in April of 2021 and suffered some nerve damage because of the procedure.
Our interview with @MeyersLeonard, the former Portland and Miami center who is hoping to return to the NBA. Nearly two years ago, he used an antisemitic slur while playing Call of Duty on Twitch. A warning–this story includes offensive language. pic.twitter.com/rWmt48Y8ID
— Jeremy Schaap (@JeremySchaap) February 1, 2023
In his interview with ESPN, Meyers Leonard said the following about the slur he used: “I feel like I’m living in a bad dream. There’s not a hateful cell in my body. And I know that I made a huge, huge mistake. There are absolutely no excuses for what happened that day. And ignorance, sadly, is a very real thing. I am not running from this, but I did not know that it happened.”
In his NBA career with the Portland Trail Blazers and Miami Heat, Meyers Leonard averaged 5.6 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. He paired those numbers with a field goal percentage of 48.2 percent and a three-point percentage of 39 percent. Leonard recently worked out for the Los Angeles Lakers but has not signed a contract with a team at this time.
