Wilson Chandler hopes NBA broadens MLK celebration going forward

DENVER — A full slate of NBA games are on the docket for Martin Luther King Jr. Day today, Monday, Jan. 16, as the league honors the icon who lost his life 48 years ago.

As a league, the NBA goes above and beyond to honor MLK. In Atlanta, Dr. King’s hometown, the Inside the NBA crew will host their show from the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change. Throughout the show, they’ll interview Martin Luther King III, the son of Dr. King, Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, an activist in his own right, and play a music video from Portland Trailblazers’ guard Damian Lillard entitled Bigger Than US which touches on recent social and civil issues in the United States.

In Memphis, where Dr. King was assassinated, the Grizzlies have held a number of events this weekend to honor MLK including speakers Jalen Rose, Spencer Haywood and WNBA player Tamika Catchings. The Grizzlies debuted their MLK50 Pride jerseys Sunday against the Chicago Bulls and will wear them again Monday to honor Dr. King.

Nuggets forward Wilson Chandler, while appreciative and thankful that the league honors Dr. King this weekend and month, would like the NBA to do more.

“I think it’s amazing any time you can celebrate a guy who has done a lot for this country, a lot for his people, lost his life doing something, gave his whole life to it, I think it’s amazing that we celebrate guys like that,” Chandler said. “I wish we would do more than the day, more than the month.”

Michael Malone also appreciates what the league does to honor Dr. King.

“One thing about the NBA, whether it is David Stern or Adam Silver as commissioner, they are at the forefront of all of that. Our league is represented by all walks of life and to celebrate and honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I think is the right thing to do.”

“Most of our guys on our team and in our league are African-American and there has to be a real feel there but the great thing about Dr. King is that it’s not just for black and white. It is for everybody, for my two girls. I think it is great that the league is at the forefront, as Popovich said, celebrating the legacy of Dr. King and what his message was but it is not just that. From all walks of life. Every color, creed, religion, and sexual orientation the league is at the forefront and I am happy to be even a small piece of that.”

Michael Malone, other coaches and players wearing this MLK shirt pregame #Ihaveadream pic.twitter.com/ls2KrCWjXK

— Harrison Wind (@HarrisonWind) January 16, 2017

The NBA is always at the forefront of all the major sports leagues in social awareness and does an outstanding job honoring MLK with the events surrounding Monday’s holiday. We’ll see if they change or broaden their message going forward.

Footnotes

Kenneth Faried is starting at power forward alongside Nikola Jokic, Emmanuel Mudiay, Gary Harris and Danilo Gallinari. Chandler will come off the bench. It’s Faried’s 15th start of the season.

Darrell Arthur (right knee soreness) will not play against Orlando. This will be the third consecutive game Arthur has missed with knee soreness.

Harris (right groin soreness), Will Barton (illness), and Gallinari (left ankle soreness) are all expected to play.