NBA postpones Wednesday's matchups, players to meet
The NBA and NBPA announced they are postponing all of Wednesday's scheduled postseason games after the Milwaukee Bucks refused to play their first-round matchup against the Orlando Magic at 4 p.m. ET.
According to the statement, all three Game 5s will be rescheduled.
The Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Lakers, and Portland Trail Blazers joined the Bucks and Magic in their decision to sit out in response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, this past weekend.
NBA players scheduled a meeting for 8 p.m. Wednesday evening to discuss their next course of action, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe. Those talks will have a significant impact on how the players proceed with the current season, Wojnarowski reports.
Teams are already having internal discussions about postponing games Thursday and beyond, sources told Wojnarowski.
"The season is in jeopardy," one veteran player told Wojnarowski.
However, a "sizable" contingent of players are in favor of completing the 2019-20 campaign because they believe the league's platform is the best way to get their messages across, sources told Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes.
"We're already here. Let's finish what we started," a star player told Haynes.
On Tuesday, Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet didn't rule out his club boycotting its second-round opener against the Boston Celtics.
Raptors head coach Nick Nurse acknowledged Wednesday that some of his players have thought about leaving the bubble following Blake's shooting.