“Boycotting the game has come up for them, as a way to try to demand a little more action,” said Raptors coach Nick Nurse. “That’s really what they want. I think there is enough attention and not quite enough action. That’s what I can sense from the discussions, their disappointment.”
Added Jayson Tatum, “It’s an active discussion. People are upset, angry and we’re just trying to come together to figure out how we can do something.”
A boycott would be a response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a 29-year old Kenosha (Wisc.) man who was shot multiple times in an altercation with officers on Sunday. The shooting of Blake, which comes two months after the death of George Floyd, a Minneapolis man who died after a police officer kneeled on his kneck for nearly nine minutes.
“People are going to say sitting out, what is that going to do?” said Tatum. “Obviously if we sit out a game or the rest of the playoffs, we understand how big of an impact that would have. Everyone is going to have to talk about it … we don’t want to just keep playing and forget about what is happening on the outside world.”
The Blake shooting has rattled NBA players inside the bubble. Several have questioned the appropriateness of being there. Before teams reported to Florida in mid-July, there was a lengthy debate among players as to whether they should go. The argument for sitting out, one spearheaded by Nets star Kyrie Irving, was that a return to play would take away from the social justice movement.
In recent days, several players wondered if they had made the right decision.
“We came here for a reason, to use our platform and wanting to send a message and hopefully bring awareness and make a change,” said Pascal Siakam. “But if feels like we’re stuck. We’re not doing anything productive … these things hurt. I don’t care where you’re from.”
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Players from the Raptors and Celtics declined to get into specifics of the meeting. Nurse said that several Toronto players had discussed leaving the bubble entirely. Players, with the league’s full support, have been visible and vocal supporters of the Black Lives Matter movement. Before each game, teams, including coaches and support staff, kneel for the national anthem. They wear Black Lives Matter tee shirts during warmups. Players regularly speak on social justice issues during media availabilities
The Blake shooting, however, has made many wonder just how effective these actions are.
“There are a lot of things that we’ve done,” Siakam said. “It just feels like it’s not changing.”
For the Raptors, this month has been especially troubling. Last June, as Toronto celebrated its first NBA championship, team president Masai Ujiri was involved in an altercation with an Alameda County Sherrif’s deputy as he attempted to access the floor. Ujiri was accused on initiating the incident. The deputy, Alan Strickland, filed a lawsuit against him.
Bodycam footage released this month revealed that Strickland, not Ujiri was the aggressor. In the video, Strickland shoved Ujiri twice, the second time after Ujiri, credential in hand, identified himself as the team president.
Said Nurse, “There is some personalness to this with part of our group.”
The teams will continue discussions tonight, several players said. Celtics rookie Grant Williams said that kneeling, while impactful early, had stopped resonating as strongly and that the focus has been on “what can we do next.” Williams said there needs to be substance to whatever players decide to do. Tatum said whatever guys decided to do, there would be no judgement.
“How many points we score, how many games we win, that sh—doesn’t matter right now,” Tatum said. “Being a black man in America is more important than what I’m doing on a basketball court. Using my platform, my voice, to help create conversations and change is more important than anything I could do out there. You think about a man being shot in his back seven times, his kids in the car, that’s way more important than anything I could do out there.”
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that defenceman Alex Edler will sign a one-day contract in order to officially retire as a member of the NHL team.
The signing will be part of a celebration of Edler’s career held Oct. 11 when the Canucks host the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Canucks selected Edler, from Ostersund, Sweden, in the third round (91st overall) of the 2004 NHL draft.
He played in 925 career games for the Canucks between the 2006-07 and 2020-21 seasons, ranking fourth in franchise history and first among defencemen.
The 38-year-old leads all Vancouver defencemen with 99 goals, 310 assists and 177 power-play points with the team.
Edler also appeared in 82 career post-season contests with Vancouver and was an integral part of the Canucks’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final, putting up 11 points (2-9-11) across 25 games.
“I am humbled and honoured to officially end my career and retire as a member of the Vancouver Canucks,” Edler said in a release. “I consider myself lucky to have started my career with such an outstanding organization, in this amazing city, with the best fans in the NHL. Finishing my NHL career where it all began is something very special for myself and my family.”
Edler played two seasons for Los Angeles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He did not play in the NHL last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
The sixth-ranked Canadian women will face World Cup champion Spain in an international friendly next month.
Third-ranked Spain will host Canada on Oct. 25 at Estadio Francisco de la Hera in Almendralejo.
The game will be the first for the Canadian women since the Paris Olympics, where they lost to Germany in a quarterfinal penalty shootout after coach Bev Priestman was sent home and later suspended for a year by FIFA over her part in Canada’s drone-spying scandal.
In announcing the Spain friendly, Canada Soccer said more information on the interim women’s coaching staff for the October window will come later. Assistant coach Andy Spence took charge of the team in Priestman’s absence at the Olympics.
Spain finished fourth in Paris, beaten 1-0 by Germany in the bronze-medal match.
Canada is winless in three previous meetings (0-2-1) with Spain, most recently losing 1-0 at the Arnold Clark Cup in England in February 2022.
The teams played to a scoreless draw in May 2019 in Logroñés, Spain in a warm-up for the 2019 World Cup. Spain won 1-0 in March 2019 at the Algarve Cup in São João da Venda, Portugal.
Spain is a powerhouse in the women’s game these days.
It won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2022 and was runner-up in 2018. And it ousted Canada 2-1 in the round of 16 of the current U-20 tournament earlier this month in Colombia before falling 1-0 to Japan after extra time in the quarterfinal.
Spain won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2018 and 2022 and has finished on the podium on three other occasions.
FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati (2023) and Alexia Putellas (2021 and ’22) have combined to win the last three Women’s Ballon d’Or awards.
And Barcelona has won three of the last four UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.
“We continue to strive to diversify our opponent pool while maintaining a high level of competition.” Daniel Michelucci, Canada Soccer’s director of national team operations, said in a statement. “We anticipate a thrilling encounter, showcasing two of the world’s top-ranked teams.”
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024
TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.
The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.
The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.
Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.
The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.
Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
