A new report indicates that LeBron James’ push to restart the 2019-20 season is expected to have the support of most NBA players, despite recent calls to not play because of the current coronavirus pandemic and racial conflicts.
Mark Medina and Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today assessed the current debate among players, noting that the role of James is central to the final decision of many players.
“While the NBA and players have issues to resolve, two people familiar with talks between the two sides told USA TODAY Sports they expect to find common ground and play the season,” Medina and Zillgitt wrote. “Another person told USA TODAY Sports that as long as Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James still wants to resume the season, he will have the support of most players. The people were granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak about the sensitive nature of these discussions.”
One month ago, the main concern about resuming the season was connected to the potential health dangers related to the highly contagious coronavirus.
However, the May 25 death of George Floyd and other deaths since then have caused some NBA players to consider not playing in order to make a statement about racial inequalities.
The fact that James wants to resume the season doesn’t mean that he’s unaware of what’s taking place or is indifferent to race-related issues.
In recent years, James has shown a strong willingness to take stands on particular issues, which have led to criticism of his remarks.
This current debate has James on the opposite side of his former teammate with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Kyrie Irving. While Irving originally voted to resume the season, he has since made strong statements within the past week about playing during the racial conflicts that continue to take place.
Also, James and current teammate Dwight Howard have taken different stands, with Howard still unsure whether or not he would return when play resumes.
James and the Lakers are strong contenders to win the franchise’s first NBA title in a decade, which would put James in the rare category of winning championships with three different teams.
