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USA Today via Reuters
Apr 7, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul (3) watches game action against the Los Angeles Lakers during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
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USA Today via Reuters
Apr 7, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul (3) watches game action against the Los Angeles Lakers during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
The fatal shooting of African American Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in August 2020, shocked the nation as a whole. As a result, the Milwaukee Bucks took a historic decision to sit out their playoff game against the Orlando Magic. This spurred the league’s players to join the protest and bring attention to the urgent problems in the country by boycotting the games. Chris Paul recently opened up about how this affected his colleagues in the league in a recent episode of ‘The Pivot Podcast‘. He revealed that he and Andre Iguodala met with a couple of teams who were contemplating playing their games the day after the incident.
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USA Today via Reuters
May 13, 2021; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul (3) dribbles the ball against the Portland Trail Blazers during the first half at Phoenix Suns Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
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The next day, Paul and his teammates were on their bus to play against the
Houston Rockets when they got to know about Milwaukee’s stance. Following this, he received calls from many of his colleagues. He said, “My phone started ringing. It’s Damian Lillard calling, Dennis, and LeBron calling. Then Adam Silver called me right, like back to back to back. Because somebody got to do something.”Following this, he set up a meeting with his colleagues to let Adam Silver know that they weren’t going to play that night. The coaches and the referees soon joined the players. Paul further spoke about how some coaches gave some powerful statements. The NBA players came together and took a major step, something unprecedented from Major American League players.
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The Milwaukee Bucks players’ walkout strike and the ensuing show of support from athletes forever changed history. Paul recounted the incident again and again pointing out the fact that someone had to do something and they did.
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