The NBA will allow players to put pre-approved social justice messages on their uniforms during the league’s resumption, but at least one player thinks the policy was implemented poorly.
Philadelphia 76ers forward Mike Scott said players were not consulted on the list of phrases the league put out and criticized the implementation of the policy.
“They gave us some names and phrases to put on the back of jerseys. That was terrible. It was just a bad miss, a bad choice,” Scott said Monday, via Tim Bontemps of ESPN. “They didn’t give players a chance to voice our opinions on it; they just gave us a list to pick from. So that was bad, that was terrible.
“I’m all about just doing, instead of saying and posting, or putting something on the back of your jersey. I don’t think that’s going to stop anything, you know?”
Some NBA players said they felt it was the wrong time to resume play amid the focus on police brutality and the death of George Floyd. The NBA tried to cater to them with opportunities such as this, but it’s understandable why players are frustrated. It might have been easier to let players come up with their own phrases for league approval instead of a one-size-fits-all list.
