Retired basketball star Jamal Crawford heaped praise on the LeBron James-produced program “The Shop” for canceling an interview with Kanye West following controversial remarks by the media personality.
Even more respect for “The Shop” not airing his interview… https://t.co/FbL66ee9x1
— 🏁 Jamal Crawford (@JCrossover) October 16, 2022
West’s remarks were connected to the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, a tragedy that led to weeks of protests and violence related to the incident.
The outrage sparked by Floyd’s death stemmed from the manner in which he died. Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was captured on video kneeling on Floyd’s neck for nine minutes and 29 seconds.
Despite repeatedly saying that he was unable to breathe, Floyd lost consciousness as a result of Chauvin’s actions and was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Chauvin, who was fired by the Minneapolis Police Department and arrested four days later, was charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter. On April 20, 2021, Chavin was found guilty on all counts and later sentenced to 22.5 years in prison.
In addition to Chauvin, three other Minneapolis police officers were later found guilty on related charges. Like Chauvin, all three had also been dismissed as police officers.
West is no stranger to making controversial remarks, such as other recent remarks that were perceived as being anti-Semitic.
Back in 2005, West appeared on a telethon for victims of Hurricane Katrina. In the midst of asking for donations, he declared (at the 1:28 mark) that then-President George W. Bush “doesn’t care about Black people.”
In addition to making volatile remarks, West has also sparked anger in recent years by publicly supporting another former president, Donald Trump.
James, along with his business partner and close friend Maverick Carter, co-produce “The Shop” and James also serves as a star in the program.
During this past offseason, James offered controversial remarks of his own by declaring (at the 22-minute mark) that he didn’t like to play in Boston because of the bigotry and racism from some of their fans.
Crawford’s support for James stems from their long relationship as rivals in the NBA. This past summer, James took part in Crawford’s annual offseason CrawsOver pro-am tournament.
James and the Lakers get the 2022-23 regular season underway on Tuesday night with a road matchup against the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors.
