LeBron James and Kyrie Irving voiced their support for Eric Garner, a man who was tragically killed during an arrest by New York City police officers in June, with “I can’t breathe” shirts ahead of tonight’s game in Brooklyn. The phrase is in reference to Garner’s last words before dying.
Photo: LeBron James during warmups sporting the "I Can't Breathe" t-shirt. #ICantBreathe pic.twitter.com/MyzNjbqy9A
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) December 9, 2014
Kyrie Irving warming up at Barclays Center in #ICantBreathe t-shirt. pic.twitter.com/PMAuGNhTcw
— Howard Beck (@HowardBeck) December 8, 2014
NBA commissioner Adam Silver shared his thoughts with Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski:
“I respect Derrick Rose and all of our players for voicing their personal views on important issues but my preference would be for players to abide by our on-court attire rules.”
James and Irving join Derrick Rose and Reggie Bush as players who have come out publicly in support of Garner. Bush said today in an interview with 97.1 The Ticket that he received support from his mother, a former police officer with more than 20 years of his experience.
Peaceful protests continue around the country after a New York grand jury decided not to indict officer Daniel Pantaleo. A federal investigation spearheaded by the Justice Department and Attorney General Eric Holder is still ongoing.
