Olympian John Carlos: NBA players' walkout gave them 'hero status'

The NBA players' walkout received high praise from Olympic legend John Carlos.

The former track star, who made history at the 1968 Olympics when he and United States teammate Tommie Smith raised their fists on the podium, said the decision not to play made the players heroes to him.

"I commend what they did. They moved up in my mind to hero status," Carlos told Brian Lewis of the New York Post. "I mean all the (athletes) that have stepped backwards from their games to set a precedent and make statement, to let ownership know there's been plenty of time relevant to Black lives being taken by the hands of law enforcement, and the fact is the ownerships have never shown respect or concern for those Black lives.

"These women as well as men became my heroes. I wanted to knock all the stuff I had off my mantelpiece and put each and every one of them on my mantelpiece as someone I should commemorate, someone I should cherish, someone I should respect and honor. They're my heroes."

The Milwaukee Bucks became the first NBA team to sit out Wednesday when they refused to take the court for Game 5 of their first-round series against the Orlando Magic, leading to the postponement of three days of NBA playoff action. Players from MLS, MLB, and the WNBA also sat out games.

"I thought this was the snowball on top of the hill getting ready to roll down, and I think all professional sports is going to take part of it, and I believe that's what's happening," Carlos said. "We'd hope ownership would come together and realize this is a very serious problem. This is not about politics as they've been (saying). This is about humanity."

The NBA committed to forming a social justice coalition with players as part of the agreement to resume the playoffs, which will focus on increasing access to voting and advocating for police and criminal justice reform.