I’m very comfortable that we’ve had those conversations with the Miller family and what it means to be socially aware but yet patriotic here locally, – Dennis Lindsey
SALT LAKE CITY — Considering the divisive weekend of national anthem-timed protests, racial-inequality dialogue, and patriotic debate the country and sports world just experienced, it was no surprise that Utah Jazz players were asked about the hot topic Monday during Media Day interviews.
The team’s responses about protests and Donald Trump ranged from a variety of controversy-averting “no comment” answers to thoughtful commentary and even a humorous reply.
Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey said his childhood background of being a “youth-home kid” and living with people of multiple ethnicities during his formative years as an orphan gives him a unique understanding “to see people as people.” As such, he offered the most contemplative insight.
The way the high-ranking Jazz official sees it: It’s OK, good even, to disagree, but the answer and healing might be found in the middle.
“In an odd way, we had this binary choice, right?” said Lindsey, referring to Sunday’s slew of anthem-timed protests and reactions around the NFL. “If you don’t stand, you’re not patriotic or if you do stand and put your hand over your heart you don’t have a social conscience and an awareness of the environment where social injustice is.
“We can reject that premise that it’s a binary choice.”
The answer, he believes, is not black or white — or red, white and blue.
“You can be highly patriotic but yet very socially aware,” Lindsey said. “I think both things beget the other, if you really think about it.”
Lindsey recalled how the Jazz came together as a team — as a family, really — and spoke in-depth last year about how to react in general and how they’d like to comport themselves during the national anthem after then-49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s kneeling protest gained traction.
Coach Quin Snyder brought in speakers to talk about this topic and others. Players engaged in thought-provoking discussions. Teammates and coaches decided to put their arms around each others’ shoulders as a sign of unity during the pregame "Star Spangled Banner."
Lindsey said there were some “touching moments” that happened internally.
“I’m very comfortable that we’ve had those conversations with the Miller family and what it means to be socially aware but yet patriotic here locally,” Lindsey said. “It actually allowed our team to come together last year.”
Though he obviously doesn’t like seeing the country in turmoil, Lindsey likes the fact that current circumstances allow his new team to have similar dialogue as the 2017-18 season begins.
“We’re going to use it to our advantage,” Lindsey said of the controversy. “We want our players to be really aware of the state that they live in, the country that they live in, the choices (they have).
“Look, we don’t live in a perfect union, but we aspire to be better. The best way to do that is for our country to be able to argue with itself and debate, and hopefully those of us in the middle can bring a little semblance of rationale and poise that goes along with it. We’ll make sure to have that conversation in a really thoughtful way.”
Jazz power forward Derrick Favors seemed to make a strong statement about the current state of the union over the weekend. On Sunday — during the heat of the NFL schedule and a day before the Jazz reconvened for the season — Favors posted an image on his Instagram account that included black and white T-shirts, each with a big red X crossing out the No. 45.
The post, no doubt, was in reference to the nation’s 45th president and not rookie teammate Donovan Mitchell, who’ll wear jersey No. 45 with Utah.
Favors declined to share his feelings outside of social media.
“The political stuff, I don’t really want to get into it,” Favors said, “because I know that everybody views things a little differently, so I’m just going to stay away from it.”
Favors grinned and added, “Appreciate the question, though.”
Forward Joe Johnson, entering his 17th NBA season, said he’s in favor of players doing whatever they feel they need to in order to express their opinion.
“Players have a right to do as they choose as far as whether they stand or take a knee or however they accept this,” Johnson said. “I have no problem with it.”
New Jazz player Thabo Sefolosha had firsthand experience with police injustice in New York City. While a member of the Atlanta Hawks, the black Switzerland-born player of mixed ethnic origins and a teammate were arrested outside a New York nightclub for allegedly interfering with police after Indiana player Chris Copeland was stabbed. While being apprehended, Sefolosha’s right leg was broken. A jury later found him not guilty on all three charges, and he settled with the NYPD for about $4 million — money he later donated to Gideon’s Promise charity — over the way he was treated during the incident.
“I think everybody has a right to an opinion and to voice their opinion,” Sefolosha said. “That’s the one thing I can definitely be behind.”
The 21-year-old Mitchell agreed with his older teammates that people and players should be allowed to voice their opinions whether he agrees with them or not.
“The flag means more than one person and one person’s comments,” Mitchell said.
The shooting guard pointed out that he has military friends who’ve served overseas who are in favor of players taking a knee during the anthem to protest and acknowledged that other veterans disagree with that decision — and he’s perfectly fine with that.
But either way — stand or kneel — Mitchell said players will upset somebody.
“There’s nothing they could have done to please everybody,” he said.
Fourth-year Jazz player Rodney Hood offered a bit of welcomed levity on the heated topic.
When asked for his opinion on Trump and his sports controversies — the first being a beef with Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors over a White House invitation/rescinded invitation followed by an inflammatory comment about NFL players who protest during the national anthem — Hood declined to delve too deeply into the debate but offered a humorous suggestion.
“I think somebody needs to take his Twitter account away,” Hood said, eliciting chuckles from media members at the Zions Bank Basketball Campus. “Other than that, I really don’t have a comment on him.”
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