Milwaukee Bucks boycott playoff game in response to Jacob Blake shooting

(Image credit: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

published 26 August 2020

The Milwaukee Bucks made a historic statement Wednesday by boycotting Game 5 of their first round NBA playoff series against the Orlando Magic. Multiple teams still standing in the Orlando bubble have reportedly discussed sitting out their next game in response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake, an unarmed Black man, in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Sunday. But it was the Bucks, the team representing Blake's state, who first made the call.

Milwaukee's players did not come out on to the court for warmups, and it does not appear the team's decision was made in coordination with the Magic, who were gearing up for the game before heading back to the locker room a few minutes before the scheduled tip-off. Bucks veteran guard George Hill told The Undefeated he and his teammates chose not to play because "we're tired of the killings and the injustice." Players across the league, including LeBron James, have expressed support for the move, and the Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets are reportedly planning to follow Milwaukee's lead and boycott Game 5 of that series, which was scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. E.T.

It's unclear if the Bucks will have to forfeit the game — though for many that's besides the point — but the Magic have reportedly said they wouldn't accept such a result, indicating they stand with their opponents in protest. Either way, observers say the fact that the Bucks, the Eastern conference's no. 1 seed and a title favorite, were willing to forego a potentially series-clinching game, makes the gesture all the more meaningful. Tim O'Donnell

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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.