The Dallas Mavericks stopped playing the national anthem before the home games, by order of their owner, Mark Cuban, confirmed ESPN on Tuesday.
The Mavericks do not intend to resume the tradition of singing the national anthem before the games in the future.
The Cuban, who declined to comment, made the decision after consulting the NBA commissioner, Adam Silver. The Mavericks have not announced a change in policy, but the national anthem has not been played before any of the 13 pre-season and regular season games in American Airlines Center this season.
No other players, coaches or staff mentioned the change, according to a team source.
The NBA’s book of rules requires players to stay during the national anthem, but Silver refused to apply that rule, especially since kneeling during the anthem has become a popular way to protest social injustice in recent years. The vast majority of NBA players and many coaches knelt during the national anthem since the NBA restart last summer in Orlando, Florida, when the League incorporated messages in support of the movement. Black life matters and other causes of social justice in the design of courts and in other forms.
“I recognize that this is a very emotional issue on both sides of the American equation right now, and I think it requires real commitment rather than enforcement,” Silver said at a December news conference.
In a June interview on Outside the ESPN Lines, Cubanez expressed his support for the players who kneel during the national anthem as a form of protest.
“If they knelt down and were respectful, I would be proud of them. I would like to join them,” said the Cuban.
The Cuban then added that he hopes that the league “will allow the players to do what is in their heart”.
“Whether he raises his arms or kneels, anything else, I don’t think it’s a matter of respect or disrespect for the flag, anthem or our country,” the Cuban said. “I think this is more a reflection of our players’ commitment to this country and the fact that it is so important to them that they are willing to say what is in their heart and do what I think is right.”
“I will give up [el comisionado] Adam [Silver] on any final decision and [la directora ejecutiva del sindicato de jugadores] Michele Roberts. But the reality is that I hope we let the players do exactly what they think is right. “Things to do”.
In 2017, the Cuban expressed another opinion after President Donald Trump criticized NFL players who knelt during the anthem to protest against social injustice and police brutality.
“This is the United States and I am proud of the people who speak civilly. This is who we are as a country,” the Cuban said at the time. “I will sit there with my hand over my heart. I think the players will be [de pie]. I hope they will. “
Three years later, as the Black Lives Matter movement continued to grow, the Cuban explained what changed his mindset.
“Because I think I’ve learned a lot from 2017,” he told OTL in June. “I think we have evolved as a country. And this is truly a unique moment in time when we can grow as a society, we can grow as a country and be much more inclusive and more aware of the challenges facing minority communities.
“So I will be in unison with our players, whatever they choose to do. But again, when our NBA players do what they have in mind, when they do what they feel they are and are looking to move this country forward . “. When it comes to race, I think it’s a beautiful thing and I’ll be proud of it. “