Report: NBA players likely won't be allowed to go without jersey names

Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler's request to wear no name on the back of his jersey likely won't be approved, sources told Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.

While the NBA and the NBPA have agreed to a list of 29 social justice messages players can wear instead of their names once games resume, a jersey nameplate is part of the uniform agreement, according to Reynolds.

However, Yahoo's Vincent Goodwill reports the league is still reviewing the matter, and over 30 players have requested a blank nameplate.

Butler said last week that he wouldn't wear an approved message, and the five-time All-Star also doesn't want his regular nameplate on his jersey.

"... I'm no different than anybody else of color, and want that to be my message in the sense that just because I'm an NBA player, everybody has the same right no matter what, and that's how I feel about my people of color," Butler said.

On Sunday, a source told the South Florida Sun Sentinel's Ira Winderman that Butler would wear his regular nameplate.

Earlier in the day, Boston Celtics swingman Jaylen Brown said he was interested in Butler's original idea.

"Being able to have an empty space and playing for some of those people that we don't know their names - and we may not ever know their names - I think that's powerful, too," Brown told reporters on Sunday, including The Boston Globe's Nicole Yang.