Philadelphia 76ers guard J.J. Redick again addressed the racial slur he appeared to utter during a video to meant for Chinese fans of the NBA. In the video, he appears to slip up on his words and say what is considered to be a highly offensive word to describe Chinese people.
At a 76ers practice, Redick apologized for the comments, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
“I'm sorry for anyone that I offended with what was a very unintentional mishap,” Redick told reporters on Wednesday. “It's unfortunate that so many people were offended and I am sorry for that. I can't imagine waking up to celebrate a new year and having some random NBA player use a word like that. So I'm very sorry.”
Watch Redick's full comments below.
#Sixers SG @JJRedick further addresses the video to Chinese basketball fans. pic.twitter.com/pBy4IVVkZl
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) February 21, 2018
Redick made a statement on Sunday about his comments, which he maintains were not a “Freudian slip” or intentional in any way. In the statement, which he made on his Twitter page, he expressed remorse.
https://twitter.com/JJRedick/status/965443290324664320
The word he said will not be addressed in this article merely to be respectful of Chinese people and fans, who are abundant in their reverence for the NBA and its players. For those that saw the video, it does sound as though Redick said the slur.
But context is everything. When watching the video before or after reading Redick's explanation, it is plain to see Redick did not mean to say what he said. It was a slip of the tongue, which happens to everyone on numerous occasions.
Redick is an intelligent and thoughtful person, and has never before hinted at any sort of prejudice or racism. People were offended at what he said, and rightfully so. But after hearing or reading his apology, that's where the criticism of him should end.
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