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#Post#: 39--------------------------------------------------
Bucks' Wesley Matthews stands by team's decision to boycott
DIR By: The Referee
Date: August 29, 2020, 6:25 pm
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Eric Woodyard
ESPN-
Milwaukee Bucks wing Wesley Matthews said the team is not
"apologetic" for boycotting Game 5 of their first-round series
against the Orlando Magic on Wednesday in response to the police
shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He said it was a
decision the team made organically.
"I feel like we did what any team would've done in that
situation. And we're not apologetic for what we did, what we
feel is right," Matthews said ahead of the Bucks'
series-clinching victory over the Magic in Saturday's
rescheduled Game 5. "Obviously, with communication it could've
been a little bit better, but in a moment like that, sometimes
there isn't time for it.
"You can't script change. You can't script moments," he added.
"And we saw an opportunity to be with our brother, to show that
we're human, to show that this is visibly and emotionally and
physically impactful even though we are here in the bubble,
disconnected from the outside world in certain retrospect, that
it still hits and it's still a problem and a call to legislation
to help."
Matthews said the team has been in touch with Blake's family.
The Bucks' boycott sparked several other sports leagues to
protest games before resuming play. Their main intention was not
only to protest the shooting of Blake, but also to promote voter
awareness, social justice, racial equality and police reform in
America. Matthews said it wasn't planned ahead of time, as they
were "showing humanity" and they didn't anticipate the reaction,
while preparing to forfeit the game and go down 3-2 in the
series.
"We didn't think that this was gonna turn the way that it did,
but we are grateful for the fact that, that moment, that pause,
that postponement was able to help everybody reflect again and
realize that everybody's gotta step up," Matthews said.
Coach Mike Budenholzer also called the process "organic" and
said it was led by guys like assistant coach Darvin Ham, George
Hill and Sterling Brown -- who, himself, was a victim of police
brutality when he was Tased by police in January 2018. The act
was a culmination of several events.
"The idea of going down 3-2 and making that sacrifice or giving
that up for what we thought was more important and bigger than a
game of basketball, a playoff game," Budenholzer said. "A
situation where we could be 3-2, I think the room, I don't think
anybody totally grasped exactly what was gonna happen, but
certainly knew that this was possible and that this was big and
there was no hesitation in regards to going down 3-2."
Although Jaylen Brown is a member of the Boston Celtics -- an
Eastern Conference rival of the Bucks -- he said he respected
their decision, like many throughout the league.
"We came down here to use our platform, and that's exactly what
Milwaukee did; and we all saw its effect, we all saw the
awareness that was raised," Brown said Saturday. "So to be
honest, I think in hindsight we will appreciate what Milwaukee
did. There's a lot of guys that came down here for reasons other
than basketball, and to use our platforms; and Milwaukee did
exactly that. And if necessary, it could be done again.
Hopefully that won't be the case, but using our platform is what
a lot of guys came down here for."
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