DeMar DeRozan Says Don't "Vilify" Gregg Popovich For Standing During Anthem

DeMar DeRozan defends Gregg Popovich for standing during the National Anthem.

BYCole Blake
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San Antonio Spurs star DeMar DeRozan says people should not "vilify" either Gregg Popovich or Becky Hammon for standing during the national anthem, Friday. 

Pool / Getty Images

"With Pop and Becky standing, I have no thoughts [contrary to] belief in them that is all out of genuine, out of a positive side of their heart," DeRozan said "You know Pop speaks out. When it comes to Becky, she's been [on the] front line, fighting for equality since I've been a fan of hers playing in the WNBA. So everybody has their own right of making a statement and you can't vilify nobody for not doing what the other group is doing. I'm all for it."

Both Popovich and Hammon opted to stand during the anthem, while wearing Black Lives Matter shirts, when the Spurs played the Sacramento Kings, this week.

"I prefer to keep that to myself," Popovich politely explained to reporters who inquired about his choice. "Everybody has to make a personal decision. The league has been great about that. Everybody has the freedom to react any way that they want. For whatever reasons that I have, I reacted the way I wanted to."

Popovich has consistently spoken out against racial injustice through his years with the NBA.

[Via]


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About The Author
Cole Blake is currently an Editor at HotNewHipHop based out of Brooklyn, New York. He began working at the site as an intern back in 2018 while studying journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s graduated with a bachelor's degree and written extensively about a wide range of topics including pop culture, film & television, politics, video games, sports, and much more. He’s also covered music festivals such as Gov. Ball and Rolling Loud. You can find him publishing work for HNHH from Monday to Wednesday or on weekends. On the sports front, Cole’s a passionate NBA and NFL fan with his favorite teams being the Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Lakers. He also roots for the Yankees whenever he finds himself at Yankee Stadium or the Red Storm when in the company of other SJU alumni. His favorite hip-hop artists are billy woods, Earl Sweatshirt, Cam’ron, MIKE, and Mach-Hommy.