NBA players are committed to continuing the fight for Breonna Taylor [1], a young Black woman who was wrongfully killed by three Louisville police officers in an unannounced drug raid on March 13. Four months later, the officers involved in Taylor's death have yet to be charged, and several NBA players want to make sure her story isn't forgotten.
"Yes we know your job is to ask us about basketball questions. But if you guys believe in equality for all, let's ask a few social injustice questions here n there."
In a press conference on July 22, Los Angeles Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma dedicated his six minutes with the media [2] to bring attention to Taylor and demand justice for her wrongful death, according to ESPN. Shortly after the conference, Kuzma tweeted asking reporters to start asking more questions about social injustices going on nationwide. "Media & players: We work hand n hand," he tweeted. "We have platforms but help us out! Yes we know your job is to ask us about basketball questions. But if you guys believe in equality for all, let's ask a few social injustice questions here n there. We're all in this together."
Media & players: We work hand n hand. We have platforms but help us out! Yes we know your job is to ask us about basketball questions. But if you guys believe in equality for all, let's ask a few social injustice questions here n there. We're all in this together
— kuz (@kylekuzma) July 22, 2020 [3]
Lakers guard and Kuzma's teammate Alex Caruso followed suit during his interviews. "Outside of my sister's wedding questions, anything today that you ask me about basketball, I'm just going to respond with, 'We need justice for Breonna Taylor,'" Caruso said to reporters. "That's going to be my response to the rest of the questions if they're basketball-related and not pertaining to me and my sister's wedding."
He explained that many players had discussed using the NBA restart to bring attention to racial injustice. "Just got information from the rest of the players, we're trying to stay united with the message," he said. "This is one way we can control it from inside the bubble." Other NBA players including Los Angeles Clippers guard Paul George, Philadelphia 76ers forward Tobias Harris, and Denver Nuggets forward Jerami Grant have also dedicated their platforms to justice for Taylor, calling for the officers involved in Taylor's killing to be charged. Watch the full clip of Caruso's interview below.