Lou Williams '50-50' on coming back to play
With the coronavirus pandemic and the ongoing fight to combat racial injustice, reigning NBA Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams is torn on whether he wants to come back and play in the league's proposed restart.
"This is a whirlwind of a time," the Los Angeles Clippers guard said on a CoStar video chat with fans Friday. "We don't know what's the right decision now, we're trying to figure that out on the fly like everybody else because, you know, we have a job to do, we have livelihoods and we have families to feed and we're also a majority of black men at the same time."
Williams wondered how far the NBA would go to accommodate many players' desire to protest.
"If we do suit up, how much of this platform can we really use? Can we get a Black Lives Matter patch on our jerseys? Can our jerseys say Black Lives Matter? Can the court say Black Lives Matter? Can (we) use that platform to the best of our abilities? So it's just hard to call, bro. it's honestly, it's hard to call. I'm 50-50 right now, to be honest with you."
NBA players reportedly have until Wednesday to notify their teams if they don't wish to participate in the restart. Players who pass on playing will not be paid for missed games.
On Friday, Justise Winslow of the Memphis Grizzlies questioned the logistics of the league's bubble plan in Florida, a state that has seen a recent jump in COVID-19 infections. Other players such as Kyrie Irving and Dwight Howard have also criticized the idea of playing during the current social unrest.
Williams was averaging 18.7 points for the Clippers when play was suspended March 11.