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By boycotting games, NBA players are done asking for change, they demand it – Sportsnet.ca

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4 years ago

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TORONTO – This is the era of athlete empowerment and activism, and no where is that more evident than the NBA.

It’s been a special thing to watch as a generation of young athletes with gifts, fame and wealth have recognized that their collective voice can be a force of good and an agent of change.

But they’re done asking.

The Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic made history on Wednesday afternoon when they refused to play Game 5 of their first-round playoff series at the Walt Disney World Resort in response to the shooting by police in Kenosha, Wis., of Jacob Blake, who was unarmed and, according to his lawyer, left paralyzed after taking at least seven shots from behind.

It’s believed to be the first boycott of its kind in the history of the major North American sports.

The tip was scheduled for 4:10 p.m. ET, but the Bucks never took the floor to warm up, and the Magic – who did briefly – soon retreated to their locker rooms. By 4:20, equipment staff were gathering up players’ belongings and packing away basketballs.

Not long after, reports circulated that the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder were planning to boycott Game 5 of their first-round series, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. By 5 p.m., the NBA announced that all games scheduled for Wednesday would be postponed and rescheduled, including Game 5 of the Los Angeles Lakers‘ series with the Portland Trail Blazers.

Suddenly the feasibility of the NBA’s entire return-to-play plan, which was thought to be vulnerable to the pandemic, could conceivably be undone by an apparent epidemic of police violence against unarmed Black people.

The possibility of games being boycotted was first voiced by Fred VanVleet and Norman Powell of the Toronto Raptors and echoed by various members of the Boston Celtics. The Eastern Conference rivals are scheduled to tip off their second-round series on Thursday night.

“I think ultimately playing or not playing puts pressure on somebody,” said VanVleet on Tuesday. “Would it be nice if, in a perfect world, we all say we’re not playing, and the owner of the Milwaukee Bucks – that’s going to trickle down. If he steps up to the plate and puts pressure on the district attorney’s office, and state’s attorney, and governors, and politicians there to make real change and get some justice. I know it’s not that simple, but at the end of the day if we’re gonna sit here and talk about making change then at some point we’re gonna have to put our nuts on the line and actually put something up to lose.”

The Celtics and Raptors had a players’-only meeting Tuesday night at the Gran Destino Tower, the hotel they share with Boston, Milwaukee, both Los Angeles teams and the Nuggets and Jazz.

A league-wide meeting is scheduled for Wednesday night an 8 p.m., according to multiple reports, with teams meeting individually before that. How the rest of the season unfolds will likely be determined from there.

With a boycott already in play, the question now is, “What next?”

“It’s an active discussion,” said Celtics star Jayson Tatum. “Obviously it started with the Raptors and obviously that’s who we’re playing. It’s been talked about with other guys on other teams. People are upset or angry and we’re just trying to come together and figure out a way how we can do something. Obviously, people are going to say, ‘Well, what is sitting out going to do?’ Obviously, if we sit out a game or the rest of the playoffs we understand how big of an impact that will have. Everybody’s going to have to talk about it, continue to raise awareness.

“We don’t want to just keep playing and forget about what’s going on in the outside world, because it’s affecting us. It’s affecting everybody. We’re more than just basketball players; we’re people. And we have these raw emotions and feelings.”

At the point of the season where basketball is normally paramount, it very much seems like a distraction. A collection of 20-something athletes, mostly Black, mostly American and many with first-hand experience dealing with law enforcement, are determined to change the conversation.

Normally Raptors head coach Nick Nurse would be in the thick of preparing a game plan for his team against the Celtics. Instead, he’s been having meetings, listening and trying to lend support to his team dealing with another video of another unarmed Black man suffering in a violent encounter with police.

“The players are deeply disappointed that the same thing happens again in a relatively short timeframe,” said Nurse, referring to the killing by police of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25. “They want to be part of the solution, they want to help, they want justice. They want this particular problem to be handled in a much better way. That’s the first thing.

“Boycotting the game has come up for them as a way to try to demand a little more action. That’s really what they want. I think there’s enough attention and not quite enough action and that’s what I can sense from the discussions, is their disappointment. Like, ‘Man, how can we get something to change, like now. We need something to change, not just attention on the problem. We need a plan of action.’”

Nowhere has athlete activism been more evident than in the NBA where LeBron James and other prominent stars have boldly put a name and voice to causes in a way that was unthinkable when Michael Jordan was the brightest light in the sports firmament, or when Tiger Woods was the most dominant athlete on the planet.

The movement was kickstarted when James and his then Miami Heat teammates posed for pictures with hoodies up in solidarity with Trayvon Martin, the unarmed Black teenager shot by overzealous-neighbour-with-a-gun George Zimmerman, who, in turn, was acquitted at trial, claiming self-defence. It seemed like a moment where the biggest stars of the day reached back across time and were willing to stand for something like Jim Brown, Muhammed Ali, Bill Russell and others had during the civil rights movement in the 1960s.

Speaking truth to power was one of the foundational moments in the NBA’s history, specifically. Players won concessions from owners when they threatened to boycott the 1964 All-Star Game. More recently, the rapid ouster of Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling when recordings of him making racist comments surfaced was, in part, accelerated when there were suggestions the Golden State Warriors were going to boycott Game 4 of their first-round playoff series against the Clippers in 2014.

But the latest fight is big and difficult and with hard-to-define goals and objectives. And it’s not getting easier. Players who have taken the opportunity to talk about their feelings and frustrations about another incident of police violence have shown a rare vulnerability and evident anguish.

“I think for us, we just wanted to make a difference, wanted to make a change, and seeing [the shooting of Blake] shows that things are the same,” said Raptors forward Pascal Siakam. “It makes you question, ‘Have you made the [right] decision or not, or whatever the case might be?’ And for me, it hurts. It hurts to see that … we came here for a reason and using our platform and wanting to send a message and hopefully bring awareness and bring a change, but I don’t know. It just feels like we’re stuck. It feels like we’re stuck. It feels like things are not changing.”

The players, standing on the cusp of history and taking it upon themselves to rebalance 400 years of prejudice and injustice, have gone one step further.

The players have decided not to play.

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Armstrong scores, surging Vancouver Whitecaps beat slumping San Jose Earthquakes 2-0

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1 day ago

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September 15, 2024

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VANCOUVER – As the Major League Soccer season ticks down, Vanni Sartini wants his Vancouver Whitecaps to make a declaration — the team is ready to compete.

“The time of hiding ourselves, I think it’s over,” the coach said after the ‘Caps earned a 2-0 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday.

“We need to really say that we are here to try to be at the ball until the end and trying to shoot for the highest position. That doesn’t mean that we’re going to make it, but we have the quality to do it.”

With seven games left on their regular-season schedule, the ‘Caps (13-8-6) sit in fifth spot in the congested Western Conference, just two points out of fourth.

Saturday’s loss officially eliminated the last-place Earthquakes (5-21-2) from post-season action.

Vancouver has been on a hot streak since returning from the Leagues Cup break and is unbeaten (3-0-1) in its last four outings across all competitions. The team has not allowed a goal in those matches.

“It’s the fact that we play really well,” Sartini said of the clean sheets. “We have the ball a lot, we finish our attack most of the time in their box. So it’s really hard for the other team to attack us. And then when they attack us, in the rare times that they arrive in the final third, we’re very solid.”

Recent additions have bolstered the team’s ranks, including the club’s newest designated player, Stuart Armstrong. The 32-year-old Scottish midfielder scored his first MLS goal Saturday.

Three minutes after coming on as a substitute for Alessandro Schopf, Armstrong gave Vancouver a two-goal cushion in the 87th minute.

Midfielder Pedro Vite dished a short pass to ‘Caps captain Ryan Gauld, who tapped it toward Armstrong. The former Southampton FC player then blasted a shot into the top of the net for his first strike in a Whitecaps’ jersey.

He was mobbed by teammates in the corner of the field.

“I think everyone was happy. Also for the first goal, but also that it was an important three points,” said Armstrong, who signed with the ‘Caps on Sept. 3.

“It kind of felt a little bit like last week, when we had a lot of chances and we didn’t get the three points. So today, I think everyone was just relieved to have that two-goal cushion.”

Vancouver was the dominant team from the outset Saturday and did not relent, outshooting the visitors 19-5 and controlling 54.1 per cent of possession.

Fafa Picault also found the back of the net for Vancouver, while Gauld contributed a pair of assists.

Whitecaps goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka stopped both shots he faced to collect his seventh clean sheet of the year, while Daniel made nine saves for the Quakes.

Gauld and Picault teamed up in the 22nd minute when Gauld curled a cross in and the Haitian striker headed it down toward the net, only to see Daniel catch a piece of the shot with his forearm and redirect it out of harm’s way.

The duo connected again in the 35th minute on a Vancouver corner. Gauld swung a ball in and Picault jumped up from the pack to send a glancing header in past Daniel for his ninth MLS goal of the season.

San Jose briefly appeared to level the score in the 68th minute when an unmarked Ousseni Bouda collected the ball, froze Takaoka and tapped a shot into the Vancouver net. An official quickly raised the offside flag and waved off the tally.

Daniel kept San Jose’s deficit to a single goal with a pair of solid stops in the 82nd minute.

First, the Brazilian ‘keeper dove sideways on his line to tip away a bomb from Alessandro Schopf. He was tested again on the ensuing corner and jumped up to send a header from Picault over the crossbar.

“I think we created a lot of chances again,” Gauld said.

“We probably should have put the game out of their reach sooner. But we’d be more worried if we weren’t creating the chances. Three clean sheets in a row in the league, I think it’s a big thing for us. And it gives us a good platform to go forward.”

NOTES

Vancouver played without leading scorer Brian White for a third consecutive game as the American striker works his way back from a concussion. … Gauld’s second assist marked his 15th goal contribution (six goals, nine assists) in his last 15 Whitecaps games across all competitions. … An announced crowd of 21,309 took in the game at B.C. Place.

UP NEXT

The Whitecaps kick off a two-game road swing Wednesday against the Houston Dynamo. The Earthquakes host the Seattle Sounders the same night.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2024.

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Liverpool ‘not good enough’ says Arne Slot after shock loss against Nottingham Forest

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2 days ago

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September 14, 2024

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MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Not good enough. That was Arne Slot’s verdict after his first defeat as Liverpool manager on Saturday.

A shock 1-0 loss at home to Nottingham Forest in the English Premier League ended Slot’s perfect record since succeeding Jurgen Klopp at Anfield at the end of last season.

“We had a lot of ball possession but only managed to create three (or) four quite good chances, so that is by far not enough if you have so much ball possession,” said the Dutchman, who suggested his team should not be losing to the likes of Forest.

“If you lose a home game it’s always a setback, especially if you face a team … we never know, maybe they will go all the way to fight for Champions League tickets, but normally this team is not ending up in the top 10, so if you lose a game against them that’s a big disappointment.”

Slot won his first three games in charge, including a memorable 3-0 victory against Manchester United before the international break.

But that run came to an end after Callum Hudson-Odoi struck in the 72nd with a curling effort from the edge of the box and beyond goalkeeper Alisson.

Liverpool’s defeat leaves Manchester City as the only team with a 100% record in the league after a 2-1 win against Brentford kept the defending champion at the top of the table.

United won at Southampton 3-0 to end its two-game losing streak.

Unstoppable Haaland

Erling Haaland moved to 99 goals for City after scoring twice against Brentford.

The Norwegian’s double came after Yoane Wissa fired Brentford ahead with just 22 seconds on the clock.

Haaland scored his 98th and 99th goals in his 103rd City appearance in all competitions. And he was the width of the post away from his third consecutive hat trick after trebles against Ipswich and West Ham.

“He’s been really, really good. Yeah, I would say he’s the best (he’s been), but it’s only four fixtures (this season),” City manager Pep Guardiola said.

Haaland, who has been nominated for the Ballon d’Or, has nine goals in four league games. He has topped the league scoring charts in each of his two seasons at City since joining from Borussia Dortmund in 2022 for $63 million.

Haaland’s first goal after 19 minutes evened the game following Wissa’s opener, which stunned the Etihad Stadium crowd. Haaland turned and swept a shot past goalkeeper Mark Flekken after a slight deflection off Ethan Pinnock.

He was then too strong for Pinnock when shaking off the defender and running through for his second in the 32nd.

He was inches away in the 81st; the shot came back off the post after beating the keeper.

Rashford snaps run

Marcus Rashford snapped a 12-game barren run in front of goal as United beat Southampton.

Rashford doubled United’s lead at Saint Mary’s after Matthijs de Ligt’s scored his first for the club. Substitute Alejandro Garnacho scored a third in the sixth minute of stoppage time.

The win came after back-to-back defeats for United.

Rashford hadn’t scored since March in United’s win over Liverpool in the FA Cup quarterfinals. He curled in a shot from the edge of the area to put Erik ten Hag’s team 2-0 up at Southampton in the 41st minute.

Ten Hag said it could be a turning point for the forward.

“For every striker, they want to be on the scoring list. Once the first is in, more is coming. Like a ketchup bottle, once it’s going, it’s coming more,” he said.

De Ligt, who joined United from Bayern Munich in the offseason, headed in from Bruno Fernandes’ cross in the 35th.

It could have been a different story if Cameron Archer converted a penalty for Southampton in the 33rd. Instead, his effort was saved by goalkeeper Andre Onana.

Newly promoted Southampton was reduced to 10 men when Jack Stephens was sent off in the 79th for a high challenge on Garnacho.

Villa comeback

After three straight defeats to start the league, Everton looked set for its first win when leading Aston Villa 2-0.

Goals from Dwight McNeil and Dominic Calvert-Lewin put Sean Dyche’s team in control until Ollie Watkins struck twice to even the game.

Jhon Duran completed Villa’s comeback and sealed a 3-2 win in the 76th to leave Everton rooted to the bottom of the table and the only top flight team without a point.

Late drama

Jean-Philippe Mateta converted a stoppage time penalty to salvage a 2-2 draw for Crystal Palace against Leicester.

Leicester led 2-0 at Selhurst Park after goals from Jamie Vardy and Stephy Mavididi.

But Mateta sparked Palace’s response with a goal in the 47th, a minute after Mavididi doubled Leicester’s advantage.

Conor Coady fouled Ismaili Sarr in the box right near fulltime and Mateta was cool enough to convert.

West Ham left it even later to salvage a point in a 1-1 draw at Fulham.

Danny Ings struck in the fifth minute of added time after Raul Jimenez’s goal looked like earning Fulham the win.

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler, the manager of the month for August, was frustrated as his team was held to 0-0 at home by Ipswich.

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James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson

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Cavaliers and free agent forward Isaac Okoro agree to 3-year, $38 million deal, AP source says

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2 days ago

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September 14, 2024

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CLEVELAND (AP) — Restricted free agent forward Isaac Okoro has agreed to re-sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers on a three-year contract, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Saturday.

Okoro’s new deal is worth $38 million, according to the person who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the contract has not been signed or announced by the team.

ESPN.com first reported the agreement, citing Okoro’s representation.

The fifth overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft, Okoro is Cleveland’s best perimeter defender, often drawing the assignment of guarding the opponent’s top scorer. Okoro also has worked to improve his offensive game.

The 23-year-old averaged 9.4 points and 3.0 rebounds in 69 games — 42 starts — last season for the Cavs, who beat Orlando in the opening round of the playoffs before losing to eventual champion Boston.

Okoro shot a career-best 39% on 3-pointers, forcing teams to come out and guard him.

His agreement caps an extraordinarily busy summer for the Cavs that began with coach J.B. Bickerstaff being fired and replaced by Kenny Atkinson. All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell signed a three-year, $150 million extension in July, ending months of speculation that he wanted out of Cleveland.

Also, power forward Evan Mobley signed a five-year, $224 deal and center Jarrett Allen signed a three-year, $91 million extension.

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