Nuggets planning statement during tonight's national anthem

Denver Nuggets players will lock arms with one another during tonight’s national anthem prior to their preseason opener versus the Golden State Warriors, according to The Undefeated’s Marc Spears. Coach Michael Malone also challenged his players to do more socially and in the community.

The move by the Nuggets comes nearly a week after Malone established a four-player committee to serve as a leading voice for the team when it comes to tackling social, political and basketball-related issues.

“This year I’m going to have a committee. I picked four players to be on that committee that I can go to at all times,” Malone said. “It might be basketball related or it might be what we’re dealing with right now outside the sports world with President Trump and everything else. And Jameer (Nelson), Paul (Millsap), Nikola (Jokic) and Gary (Harris) kind of make up my committee and I hit those guys up last night to kind of start the discussion. I want to hear what they have to say.”

Tonight’s preseason matchup is the first game on the league’s schedule and could set a precedent that other teams around the league follow.

Multiple Nuggets players told BSN Denver at media day and throughout training camp that the team was planning on making a statement of some kind. Paul Millsap and Jameer Nelson were especially vocal that the team would do something, but only if all 18 players on the Nuggets’ training camp roster felt comfortable.

“One thing the NBA is all about is diversity and inclusion,” Malone continued. “We respect all our players’ voices. We’re going to let them talk amongst themselves, let us know how they feel. The one thing I hope we can do is be unified in any statement that we want to make.”

“Whatever it is, we’re going to do it together and we’re going to do something that everybody on this team feels comfortable doing,” Millsap added.

The topic became prevalent throughout media days and training camps across the country after the past few weeks of NFL protests during the anthem.

Unlike the NFL, the NBA has a rule that prohibits players from kneeling during the national anthem. On page 61 of the league rulebook, it states that “players, coaches, and trainers are to stand and line up in a dignified posture along the sidelines or foul line during the playing of the National Anthem.”

In a memo sent to all 30 teams by commissioner Adam Silver this week, the league presented ideas for how teams can express social activism throughout their communities. The league restated its stance and rule on standing for the national anthem in their memo.

Prior to Game 1 of the ongoing WNBA Finals, the Minnesota Lynx locked arms while the Los Angeles Sparks left the floor and remained in their locker room during the national anthem.