Celtics' Brown, 76ers' Scott criticize limited jersey statements
Boston Celtics swingman Jaylen Brown isn't pleased with the limited list of statements about social justice that the NBA and NBPA agreed upon for player jerseys when games resume later in July.
"I would like to see more options available to put on the back of our jersey," Brown told reporters, including The Athletic's Jared Weiss, on Monday. He added, "For issues and causes such as now, I think that list is an example of a form of limitations. ... I was very disappointed in the list."
It was reported last week the league and union approved a list of 29 social-justice statements players will have the choice of wearing on the back of their jerseys. The list does not include references to specific instances of societal issues such as police brutality.
"'Break the Cycle,' 'Results,' 'Inequality by Design,' things like that I think may have a deeper impact than some of the things that were given to us," Brown said when asked about potential options he would have liked.
Philadelphia 76ers forward Mike Scott agreed, going a step further and calling the plan a "bad miss."
"They gave us some names and phrases to put on the back of jerseys. That was terrible," Scott said, according to ESPN's Tim Bontemps. "It was just a bad miss, a bad choice. They didn't give players a chance to voice our opinions on it; they just gave us a list to pick from. So, that was bad, that was terrible. I'm all about just doing, instead of saying and posting, or putting something on the back of your jersey. I don't think that's going to stop anything, you know?"
Brown added: "We have to go down there and make sure that people don’t forget about George Floyd or Breonna Taylor or Philando Castile or Ahmaud Arbery or Trayvon Martin - which was in the Orlando area. And the list goes on," he said, per The Athletic's Jay King.
The 23-year-old - who marched in his hometown of Atlanta on May 30 in the wake of Floyd's killing - said that he initially had reservations about playing in the NBA's restart, and he was also dealing with some family matters. But he's now committed to using his platform.
"A lot of our guys are choosing to go down to Orlando because we are playing for something bigger than ourselves," he said.