NBA Playoff boycott is about fans more than police injustice.
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Our Michael Jordan last dance article exposes how dealing with idol worship was more difficult than the actual game for Jordan, which lead to him retiring twice. Twenty-two years later, The remaining NBA playoff teams face a similar dilemma. Here’s why the NBA Playoff boycott is about the fans.
Dear America, professional sports aren’t essential in case you haven’t notice. In terms of talent and entertainment, the Olympics isn’t beneath the NBA, which canceled this year’s Olympics
NBA players want to protest and bring to light the cases of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and recently Jacob blake. All victims of police injustice. The NBA has more popular players today, thanks to social media than ever before. However, the protest would send a message to fans more than the police.Â
Over four years ago, after the murder of Tamir Rice in Cleveland, Ohio, I witnessed more fans attending Cavs games than protest. It wasn’t even close. In a now-infamous postgame interview, Lebron James states he didn’t have enough information about the Tamir Rice shooting to make a statement.
This infuriated Clevelanders, not just sports fans. Yet Clevelanders were made a mockery of and were told that sports and police injustice have nothing to do with each other. They were told that asking players to boycott games is too much.Â
As of last night, the L.A. Clippers and lakers postponed all of their playoff games. Three playoff games were canceled last night as well. Since his infamous Tamir Rice interview and even prior to it, Lebron James has been vocal on police injustice. Even more so in the bubble. But how effective will a playoff boycott be? Will, it just upset sports fans even more since the season restarted after COVID?
What are NBA players hoping to gain by protesting the playoff in light of the Robert blake shooting.? The whole world knows and just protested for months for George Floyd yet the NBA season resumed. To the athlete’s credit, they’ve kept the victims of police injustices names in the media during pre and postgame conferences. But the deeper issue isn’t the police.
The issue is the fans who watch and want to watch the games rather than become activists in their communities, as a lifestyle, not just when the police shot someone.
It is our civilians that worshiped athletes and made them more important than teachers, not the police. Â
Like Jordan 20 years ago dealing with idol worship from fans, the players today face a similar struggle. Getting their message across to the fans to do something. Not playing games will have zero effect on politicians reconstructing their local police force. But it will reinforce the message that sports aren’t as important as we think it is to fans. But will fans be able to break the spell and sin of idol worship?
Even reaching a small number of fans and communicating with them directly on how and why to get involved in their communities will go further. NBA players are viewed as role models whereas to others they hold no political influence. Especially to the far right who just wants them to shut up and dribble.
In conclusion, the NBA playoff boycott is a perfect opportunity for athletes to consult with local activists. This will give them credibility and make better usage of their message to make a statement. It will empower athletes for good, put responsibility in citizens’ hands, and dilute the spell of sports idol worship. All of the above will arm communities to better fight police injustice than postponing a season.
Do you feel the boycott should be more about the fans or police brutality,? let us know your thoughts below.