Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown commended the Milwaukee Bucks for their boycott earlier this week that raised the type of awareness that Brown and fellow players hoped would come from inside the NBA bubble.
As the Celtics prepare to resume game action with Sunday’s Game 1 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Raptors, Brown reflected on Milwaukee’s decision.
"We all saw the awareness that was raised so, to be honest, I think in hindsight we will appreciate what Milwaukee did,” said Brown. "There’s a lot of guys that came down here for reasons other than basketball, and to use our platforms. Milwaukee did exactly that and, if necessary. it could be done again. Hopefully that won’t be the case but using our platform is why a lot of guys came down here.”
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Boston sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Brown lauded NBA players for coming together in recent days to talk through their emotions and work with the league to come up with a plan to further efforts for social justice and racial equality.
The 23-year-old spoke passionately about how the league’s brief pause could accelerate change.
Forsberg: Brown's voice loud and clear amid boycotts
"I think promises are made year after year. We’ve heard a lot of these terms and words before. We heard them in 2014 — reform. We’re still hearing them now,” said Brown. "A lot of them are just reshaping the same ideas and nothing is actually taking place. Long-term goals are one thing, but I think there’s stuff in our wheelhouse as athletes with our resources and the people that we’re connected to that short-term effect is possible as well.
Boston Celtics
Find the latest Boston Celtics news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Boston.
"Everybody keeps saying change is going to take this, change is going to take that. That’s the incrementalism idea that keeps stringing you along to make you feel like something’s going to happen, something’s going to happen. People were dying in 2014, and it's 2020 and people are still dying the same way. They keep saying reform, reform, reform, and ain’t nothing being reformed.
"I think the NBA did a good job initially about putting Black Lives Matter on the court, our jerseys have a message behind them, TV timeouts, we’ve done numerous amounts of videos, and it’s still not enough. People are still getting killed in the street, and the climate of America is still the same. But, once again, I commend what the Milwaukee Bucks did. We all see its effect, and the awareness that it rose and, in hindsight, we’re going to appreciate Milwaukee for doing that.”
Bill Russell 'proud' of NBA players for taking a stand
Brown, who has often used his media time to promote voting, said he’d also like to see the NBA open up all of its arenas for voting, not just the ones owned by the league’s teams. The Celtics do not own TD Garden.
"Initially, when we went into those discussion with the Board of Governors, every arena was supposed to be [opened]. Not just arenas that were owned by the team,” said Brown. "Every arena needs to be open. Voter suppression is real. I don't understand why that's a problem or that's an issue.
"But every arena should be open, it should be available in access to be able to have people of color, disadvantaged people to feel like they can vote. Voting shouldn't be this hard.”