Enes Kanter: NBA players telling me to call out the hypocrisies of LeBron

Enes Kanter Freedom: “Whenever I talk about it was never about Black or white athletes, or red or purple athletes. It was never about a color. I even had a conversation with many of my teammates, and a thing people don’t understand is that many of the Black athletes in the league are telling me to call out these people and [those] people. Not many people know that. They are the ones telling me to call out the hypocrisies of LeBron James, the hypocrisies of Michael Jordan, but they are the ones actually sending me talking points about you can’t say this, you can’t say that. I remember having one conversation with one of them, and he’s like, ‘Listen, these teams got us. We cannot talk, but you’re talking and you’re already out there, so you might as well just say this and say that.’ I don’t follow them blindly. I actually do research and if I believe it, I’ll go out there and say it. So, not many people know about it, but many Black athletes in the league are the ones reaching out to me saying you should talk about this and that.”
Source: Etan Thomas @ basketballnews.com

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Kellan Olson @KellanOlson
That Enes Freedom read by @Vincemarotta really rang through the arena – 12:20 AM

Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
How tf is Enes gonna call himself Freedom when he can barely free himself up off of Boston’s bench – 12:01 AM

Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
Now Enes traveled, taking too many steps. Apparently Freedom isn’t free – 10:50 PM

Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
JaVale McGee just hit a 3 in Enes Kanter’s face. Pretty awesome he has Freedom to do whatever he wants on offense right now – 10:45 PM

Salman Ali @SalmanAliNBA
Two things I’ll go my grave never understanding:
1. The Thunder trading Alperen Sengun
2. People comparing Sengun to Enes Kanter simply because they’re both Turkish big men – 10:03 PM

Alex Kennedy @AlexKennedyNBA
Enes Kanter Freedom sat down with @etanthomas36 for a wide-ranging conversation about his recent Fox News comments regarding athlete activism, his beef with LeBron James, becoming an American citizen and much more. Read the Q&A or watch the interview here: basketballnews.com/stories/qa-ene… – 11:50 AM

Enes Kanter @EnesFreedom
The explanation y’all been waiting for!
Things can be taken out of context so
I wanted to make this very clear for everyone!
It is our duty as U.S. citizens to criticize our government and hold them accountable to make this country a better place.
@CNN & @wolfblitzer pic.twitter.com/tfVlcc9pei – 11:16 AM

Sopan Deb @SopanDeb
This exchange between @IChotiner and Enes Kanter Freedom on his comments about Jeremy Lin: https://t.co/DSpCTKwxIn pic.twitter.com/nf0e7w4iay – 11:45 PM

Enes Kanter @EnesFreedom
Best way to celebrate becoming an American is giving back to the community! 🇺🇸
1,000 meals (all VEGAN)
to the homeless in Los Angeles.
Huge thanks to @TheLAMission
The “Enes Kanter Freedom truffle pasta” was a hit! pic.twitter.com/GSw3XWgetr – 8:30 PM

Sopan Deb @SopanDeb
Enes Kanter Freedom with a new op-ed in @TheAtlantic: “Why I Became An American”
bit.ly/3EBzmFM – 12:08 PM

Kamenetzky Brothers @KamBrothers
Thursday’s @LockedOnLakers podcast! Topics include Jeanie Buss addressing Frank Vogel’s job security, Russell Westbrook the teammate, and whether Enes Freedom wants change or attention. #FirstListen @LockedOnNBAPods @LockedOnNetwork
Subscribe. Thx!
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/jea… – 10:53 AM

Abby Chin @tvabby
Intrigue.
Rookie Brandon Boston t-ed up for jawing at Marcus Smart. Not something I would do.
That was just moments after Eric Bledsoe walked by Enes Freedom and slapped at the ball in his hands. Freedom stared him down afterwards.
#chippy – 11:17 PM

Alex Kennedy @AlexKennedyNBA
Enes Kanter Freedom clarifies recent comments: “I stand for freedom. I would never tell an athlete or a human being or a celebrity to not use their platform. The greatest thing we have is freedom of speech, and the amazing thing we have is the platform.” basketballnews.com/stories/freedo… – 12:11 PM

Jorge Sierra @hoopshype
Enes Freedom: ‘Two gentlemen from the NBA begged me to take the shoes off’
hoopshype.com/2021/12/08/ene… – 3:49 AM

More on this storyline

Enes Kanter Freedom: “I remember doing a basketball camp and I was signing autographs for kids. And while I was signing, one of the parents turned around and said, ‘How can you call yourself a human rights activist when your Muslim brothers and sisters are in pretty much genocide in China. And you’re still using your platform and focusing on only one region?’ And I was shocked. I turned back to that parent and said, ‘I’m going to get back to you. I promise.’ And I started to learn about China using their power to abuse many countries around — like Tibetan, even Mongolians, Taiwanese people, Hong Kongers and stuff. -via basketballnews.com / December 11, 2021

“Before the game at Madison Square Garden, two gentlemen from the NBA begged me to take the shoes off,” said Kanter. “I was confused. I was getting ready for my citizenship test and I knew that the First Amendment is freedom of speech. Them telling me to take my shoes off went against my First Amendment rights. I said I would not take them off. I didn’t care if I got banned or fined. During halftime I received a text message from my manager: All the Celtics games were suddenly banned in China. It took one half of a Celtics game, with me wearing these shoes, on the bench, for the games to get banned.” -via New York Post / December 8, 2021

“They asked me if I would wear those shoes again and I promised not to — but I wore ‘Free Uyghur,’” he said, referring to the minority Muslim ethnic group that has reportedly suffered human rights abuses in China. “The National Basketball Players Association called me and harassed me. I told them to stop calling and texting me.” -via New York Post / December 8, 2021