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In what will likely go down as a historic day not only in professional sports but in the country as a whole, both the NBA and WNBA postponed their games on Wednesday after the Milwaukee Bucks chose to boycott their Game 5 playoff matchup against the Orlando Magic.
The Milwaukee Bucks have decided to boycott Game 5, source tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 26, 2020
Shortly after the Bucks and Magic game was postponed, it was announced that the remaining Wednesday games (Thunder vs. Rockets and Lakers vs. Blazers) would also be postponed in solidarity with the Bucks’ decision.
All games are postponed, and Game 5 of each series will be rescheduled, NBA says.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 26, 2020
The decision to postpone competitions quickly spread, as another Milwaukee franchise (the Brewers) decided to postpone their contest against the Cincinnati Reds, as did the Seattle Mariners and San Diego Padres. Shortly before the expected tip of the first scheduled WNBA game between the Washington Mystic and Atlanta Dream, the league announced that all games on Wednesday would be postponed as well.
The WNBA announced that the three games scheduled for this evening have been postponed. Information regarding rescheduling of the games will be provided when available.
— WNBA (@WNBA) August 26, 2020
These boycotts/protests/strikes represent the latest action in a series of stands against social and racial injustice made by professional athletes across the country. More specifically, the original decision to boycott by the Milwaukee Bucks (which propelled the NBA to officially postpone Wednesday’s games) stemmed from the recent shooting of Jacob Blake, a 29-year old man in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Sunday night. After their game was officially postponed, two Bucks players — Sterling Brown and George Hill — released the following statement:
The Milwaukee Bucks statement: pic.twitter.com/F7XOPs4NqE
— Malika Andrews (@malika_andrews) August 26, 2020
Elizabeth Williams, forward for the Atlanta Dream, also released a statement Wednesday night on behalf of the WNBA after their games were postponed:
"The consensus is to not play in tonight's slate of games and to kneel, lock arms and raise fists during the national anthem."
— ESPN (@espn) August 26, 2020
The Atlanta Dream’s Elizabeth Williams reads a statement announcing that the WNBA will not play in tonight’s games. pic.twitter.com/HRoLbCS4SN
At the time of this posting, it is unknown if or when both the NBA and WNBA will resume their season. According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the NBA is scheduled to have a Zoom call Wednesday night with many players in attendance to discuss the next possible steps going forward. Canis Hoopus will continue to monitor this situation and provide updates as they become avaiable.