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Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard expressed his hesitancy in resuming the 2019-20 NBA season in a statement provided by his agent, Charles Briscoe, on Saturday night.
Briscoe further clarified Howard's statement on Sunday, saying his client's words were more about recognizing the importance of the social issues at hand. He also emphasized that the Lakers big man hasn't made a decision yet about playing basketball this season since it is the last thing in his mind at the moment.
“The statement was about social injustice and racism,” Briscoe said, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “Yet everybody is still talking about whether basketball should be played. He isn't saying that basketball shouldn't be. He's just saying that you should not be taking attention away from what's going on in the country to talk about basketball. Basketball is just a sport, at the end of the day. But what's going on with people dying in the streets, that's something real. That statement, it had nothing to do with sports. It had everything to do with racism and social injustice.”
In his statement, Dwight Howard suggested basketball's return might be an unnecessary distraction. He also said that the “unity of my people would be an even bigger championship” than possibly winning his first NBA title with the Lakers.
As noted by Briscoe though, things are not so cut and dried. It seems players with concerns — including Howard — are grappling with the cost-benefit analysis that could come to a return to action.
Howard was not the only Lakers player to air his grievances with the potential return-to-play plan, as Avery Bradley has reportedly been one of the main orchestrators in creating a dialogue about the issue.
The players want to get this right. People of color make up over 80 percent of the league, and NBA players have been among the most active in speaking out against racial injustice and participating in protests.
Regardless of their decision, the players are likely to establish a forum on how best to remain active in terms of using their voices and staying present in various communities.