Retired NBA player Kenyon Martin grabbed headlines last week after his controversial comments about Jeremy Lin's hair. In a now-deleted video on Instagram, the 39-year-old suggested that the Brooklyn Nets point guard shouldn't have dreadlocks because he isn't black.
Martin has since clarified his statement and emphasized it was meant to be a joke. He added that it was never his intention to be racial and it was just taken too far.
Now speaking after Martin's latest statement, Lin revealed that the former Cincinnati Bearcats standout reached out to him as well and “was extremely apologetic,” according to ESPN's Ian Begley.
“It was a great conversation. I think things were blown out of proportion, taken a little out of context as well. But me and him had a discussion where he was extremely courteous,” Lin said.
“Like, I'm actually impressed with how he handled everything. I'm thankful for the conversation we had, and I'm also sorry for some of the things he and his son kind of had to deal with in the aftermath [with fans writing insensitive comments on their social media page].”
The 29-year-old guard also condemned the action of people who used racial slurs in response to Martin's comments and cited that he hopes their latest conversation would end the issue for good.
“I'm just processing everything that's happened and kind of felt he was dehumanized to some degree. I wish it didn't happen like that, but we're beyond that, and hopefully I don't have to speak about this incident or my hair anymore.”
Follow Us
Subscribe