NBA to Paint “Black Lives Matter” on Courts for Season Restart

The slogan will be painted inside both sidelines in all three arenas the league will use 

A participant holding a Black Lives Matter sign at the
A participant holding a Black Lives Matter sign at an NYC protest.
Erik McGregor/LightRocket via Getty Images

In a show of support for the ongoing racial justice protests in the United States, the NBA will paint “Black Lives Matter” on the courts that will be used in the league’s July restart in Orlando at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports complex.

The slogan will be painted inside both sidelines in all three arenas the league will use, once in front of the scorer’s table and once in front of the broadcast booth.

Though it hasn’t been confirmed one way or the other, the NBA may also have players wear “Black Lives Matter” on the backs of their jerseys as teams in England’s Premier League have done.

That would go hand in hand with OKC Thunder point guard Chris Paul, the president of the NBPA, telling ESPN that the league and union were working on a way to allow players to wear uniforms with personalized messages linked to social justice on the backs of their jerseys instead of their last names.

The WNBA is also considering painting “Black Lives Matter” on the court when it begins its abbreviated 2020 season and may also allow players to wear warm-up shirts with “Say Her Name” on them in reference to female victims of police brutality.

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