The league office continues to support Enes Kanter amid ongoing fall out from his vocal opposition to President Recep Erdogan of his native Turkey.

After the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals, Kanter expressed dismay at the NBA's official Turkish twitter account conspicuously leaving him out of its recap.

Later, in response to a tweet about one Nuggets fan making light of his inability to return to Turkey due to an outstanding warrant for his arrest, Kanter tweeted that he “chose to support, democracy, freedom and human rights,” urging Denver to “take control” of fans at Pepsi Center.

Related NewsArticle continues below
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) drives to the basket during the second half against Portland Trail Blazers forward Toumani Camara (33) at Moda Center.
NBA rumors: Lakers insider drops eye-opening Blazers intel on potential trade candidate
Michael Porter Jr. photoshopped in Trail Blazers jersey (number 1)
Trail Blazers trade proposal for Michael Porter Jr. after postseason struggles

On Wednesday, NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum issued a statement in support of Kanter, severing ties with the local vendor who ran the league's twitter account in Turkey. Via Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press:

The NBA Players' Association also released a statement backing Kanter, noting that the union “supports our players using their platforms to stand up for their beliefs and the principles they support.”

Kanter signed with the Blazers in February after securing his release from the New York Knicks. He was twice unable to play in road games against the Toronto Raptors during the regular season due to his passport being revoked by the Turkish government. Starting at center for Portland due to a season-ending injury to Jusuf Nurkic, Kanter is averaging 15.3 points and 9.6 rebounds on 60.3 percent shooting in 30.3 minutes per game so far in the postseason.