Thursday’s slated scheduled for the NBA play-offs were wiped clean as the players continued their boycott in protest at racial injustice in America following the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a black man, last week.
It’s the second-straight day that there will be no basketball following their sudden stance on Wednesday.
Thursday’s matches between the Utah Jazz and the Denver Nuggets, the Toronto Raptors and the Boston Celtics, and the Los Angeles Clippers and the Dallas Mavericks will be rescheduled.
The NBA hopes for action to resume on Friday or Saturday.
NBA executive vice president Mike Bass said in a statement: ‘NBA play-off games for today will not be played as scheduled. We are hopeful to resume games either Friday or Saturday.’
Representatives from the 13 teams remaining in the play-offs will take part in a conference call on Thursday to discuss the next steps.
‘There is a video conference call meeting scheduled later this afternoon between a group of NBA players and team governors representing the 13 teams in Orlando, along with representatives from the National Basketball Players Association and the league office and NBA Labor Relations Committee Chairman Michael Jordan, to discuss next steps,’ the statement continued.
On Wednesday, the Milwaukee boycotted Game 5 of their Eastern Conference first-round game against the Orlando Magic in protest at the shooting of Blake in their home state of Wisconsin.
Leading 3-1 and needing just one more win to move into the Eastern Conference semi-finals, the Bucks did not emerge from their locker room for practice ahead of game five.
The NBA subsequently postponed its two other play-off games scheduled for Wednesday night.
In other player-led responses to the shooting and accompanying unrest, three WNBA fixtures were also called off, as were two Major League Baseball games – one of which was due to take place in Milwaukee. Five of the six scheduled Major League Soccer games were also postponed.
Bucks senior vice president Alex Lasry wrote on Twitter: ‘Some things are bigger than basketball. The stand taken today by the players and org shows that we’re fed up. Enough is enough. Change needs to happen.
‘I’m incredibly proud of our guys and we stand 100% behind our players ready to assist and bring about real change.’
Blake was shot on Sunday in Kenosha, Wisconsin – 40 miles from Milwaukee – apparently in the back and in front of his children, with the incident captured on phone video, igniting new protests over racial injustice in several cities.
Los Angeles Lakers talisman LeBron James tweeted: ‘F*** THIS MAN!!!! WE DEMAND CHANGE. SICK OF IT.’
In light of Milwaukee’s stance, the NBA announced Wednesday’s matches between the Bucks and the Magic, as well as LA Lakers-Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets-Oklahoma City Thunder, have been shelved.
A statement on their Twitter account said: ‘The NBA and the NBPA today announced that in light of the Milwaukee Bucks’ decision to not take the floor today for Game 5 against the Orlando Magic, today’s three games – MIL-ORL, HOU-OKC and LAL-POR have been postponed. Game 5 of each series will be rescheduled.’
