When finally his anger boiled over, LeBron James decided to get up and leave before the meeting was over. With him went teammates from Lakers.
It was Wednesday night, and they had spent more than an hour in a ballroom in a hotel convention center owned by Disney World, discussing the fallout of the Milwaukee Bucks who skipped the afternoon game in protest that Jacob Blake was shot. Now their game against the Portland Trail Blazers and another between Houston and Oklahoma City had been postponed, but there was still no coherent plan for what to do next. What was the point of just boycotting one game and then playing back?
James, who is proud of well-planned activism, was content with the decision. He was ready to stop the season. However, there were those in his team who wanted to continue playing who needed the season to continue with a view to their future.
By Thursday morning, most Lakers agreed: they wanted to finish the season.
“LeBron’s emotions got the best of him yesterday and today he calmed down,” said a person familiar with the meetings. “He spoke to a lot of different people. Yes, he changed his mind about playing, but he was always for what everyone else wanted, which was the majority. Only when Milwaukee went through that did it send him over. ”
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The Bucks did not tell anyone in advance that they had decided not to play Game 5 of their first-round playoff series against the Orlando Magic.
That decision came moments before the game was scheduled to begin, after some of them were in full uniform. And it took the Magic and all the other teams by surprise. .
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After three hours of discussion at the arena, behind a door with a temporary sign with the image of a deer, the Bucks emerged together. In a cold, concrete corridor, they stood gloomily in front of a group of about 10 journalists to explain why they could not focus on basketball.
She explained that a police officer in Kenosha, Wis., Who shot Jacob Blake in the back seven times, and a teenager who shot dead two Protestants, escalated the American crisis to a point where they had to stop. Kenosha is only 40 miles from Milwaukee and they felt the weight of responsibility. George Hill and Sterling Brown read a statement to journalists demanding that the Wisconsin state legislature convene a special session and hold police accountable.
They did not answer any questions, including one shouting as they walked away:
“Do you intend to finish the season?”
The Bucks wrestle harder with what had been on the minds of many players before they arrived in Orlando.
In the weeks before teams entered the bubble, several players expressed their concerns about the resumption of the season. Some worried that the momentum building around the country would disappear through protests against racism and police brutality.
On May 25, a Minneapolis police officer knelt nearly nine minutes on George Floyd’s neck. The incident, which led to his death, was captured on video and protests broke out in the country in the aftermath.
Floyd’s death came at a time when two other unarmed Black men – Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia and Breonna Taylor in Kentucky – were killed.
“I think for us, the only advantage of us not playing is to keep the focus on the fight,” Clippers guard Lou Williams said in June. “… In six weeks, the world may need some healing, they may need to be on the floor for us. But if more black children than more black adults than adults dealing with police brutality are murdered and we’re still angry, I do not know if it’s in our best interest to adapt, because it seems that we do not care. ”
Williams eventually decided to become a member of his team, as did Dwight Howard of the Lakers even after he also expressed concern.
When they arrived, they promised to stop talking about racism and police brutality, and they did. Lakers guard Danny Green started every news conference and reminded people that he was still “seeking justice for Breonna Taylor.” Lakers striker Kyle Kuzma opened a news conference on Monday with a message for Jacob Blake’s family: that the players in the ring would try to help them in any way they could.
James spoke strongly about the pain that came with watching Blake’s video that was shot.
“We are scared as Black people in America,” James said. “Black men, Black women, Black children, we are afraid.”
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At dusk on Wednesday, with the moon shining brighter every minute, teams began arriving at the convention center.
Portland, Orlando, Houston, Oklahoma City and Dallas – the five teams staying at the Grand Floridian Hotel – arrived by bus. The remaining eight teams could run over as they pleased, going through carpets with southwestern designs.
Just after 8 p.m., the meeting began. Coaches were invited to join the players briefly, but were then asked to leave. Clippers coach Doc Rivers spoke briefly.
“I really did not even want to talk; I thought it had to be a player business, but [Chris Paul] really called me to just say something I did, ‘Rivers said during a broadcast Thursday on Fox.
The meeting was at times controversial, with anger and frustration expressed by many. Clippers star Kawhi Leonard said forcefully he did not want to continue playing. Teammate Patrick Beverley was upset.
Many players asked for answers from the Bucks as to why they blinded everyone. Celtics star Jaylen Brown has reportedly gone to her defense.
It was her sudden willingness not to play a game without a fully formed plan for what to do next that was irritating to many, including James. Especially after Milwaukee players announced they wanted to continue the season.
“We are dealing with crazy videos, in this bubble,” said a person familiar with the meeting. ‘There are a lot of things we are going through now. Emotions are high. Milwaukee sits outside and lets no one know, then they want to play and that flip-flop.
“The whole thing is, what if it happens again, another is shot in LA, aren’t we going to play? Or in Utah, like Portland.”
The meeting decided nothing and James walked away, injured, along with teammates who supported his decision. Later that evening, the Lakers hit for food and emotions began to cool. Chris Paul, a guard for the Oklahoma City Thunder and president of the National Basketball Players Assn., Told James that another meeting was scheduled for Thursday 11 a.m., and the Lakers agreed to participate.
After a night’s rest, the Lakers met again as a team. Players from other teams submitted late Thursday morning in the general meeting room and waited for the Lakers to participate.
Howard and Lakers guard Rajon Rondo, who hails from Louisville, Ky., Where Taylor was murdered, were the two most prominent players in favor of the season not to finish. That group felt they would better serve the community on the front lines.
But more of them wanted to play financially with so much on the line and the ability to continue with a platform to speak; not to mention the chance to win a championship
They moved forward in support of continuing the season. But that was not the end of the discussion. The conversations and meetings went on all day. Thursday night, James spoke at a conference call with team owners to insist owners are dedicated to resolving these issues.
Saturday, the games are expected to resume. The discussions continue.
Turner reported from Los Angeles.
