Information reaching Kossyderrickent has it that Aaron Gordon has deleted his 'thumbs down emoji tweet' as he disagrees with Anthony Edwards being fined $40,000fined $40,000 for homophobic-queer slurs on Instagram. (Read More Here).
The league announced the punishment for Edwards’ use of “offensive and derogatory language” in a since-deleted Instagram video published to his more than 1m followers. He later apologized for the post.
Edwards recorded a group of men on a sidewalk and could be heard in making a disparaging, profane comment about what he assumed to be their sexual orientation. He posted an apology on Twitter soon after, and the Timberwolves issued a statement reprimanding the 22-year-old.
“What I said was immature, hurtful, and disrespectful, and I’m incredibly sorry. It’s unacceptable for me or anyone to use that language in such a hurtful way,” Edwards tweeted last week. “There’s no excuse for it, at all. I was raised better than that!”
Nikola Jokic, Kevin Durant, Rajon Rondo and Kobe Bryant are among the NBA players who have been disciplined by the league in the past for homophobic language.
The first overall pick in the 2020 draft, Edwards was Minnesota’s second-leading scorer last season with an average of 21.3 points per game that ranked 19th in the league. His average of 1.5 steals per game was 13th in the NBA.
Posting on Twitter, Edwards, who was the first pick of the 2020 Draft, said to his 178,000 followers: 'What I said was immature, hurtful, and disrespectful, and I'm incredibly sorry.
'It's unacceptable for me or anyone to use that language in such a hurtful way, there's no excuse for it, at all. I was raised better than that!'
The Timberwolves also apologized for the offense Edwards' actions have caused, insisting the team is committed to inclusivity.
'We are disappointed in the language and actions Anthony Edwards displayed on social media,' the team said in a statement attributed to team president Tim Connelly that was released Monday.
'The Timberwolves are committed to being an inclusive and welcoming organization for all and apologize for the offense this has caused to so many.'
The league has previously fined players for the use of homophobic or offensive language.
As reported by The Star Tribune, Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant was slapped with a $50,000 fine in April 2021 after actor Michael Rapoport shared screenshots detailing offensive statements Durant had made towards him.
However, if you ask Hall of Fame big man and Los Angeles Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, he is adamant that Edwards' apology is insufficient. According to Kareem, the Timberwolves star needs to do much more to make up for his fault.
"It would be easy to dismiss Edwards' immaturity-he's only 21-if not for the fact that we've seen so many cases of famous athletes and owners in the news spouting racism, misogyny, and anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments. This damages sports in general and their teams specifically, and revives the old stereotype of the dumb, bullying jock," Abdul-Jabbar wrote on his substack.
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