NBA players continue to show their support in a variety of ways for the ongoing protests across sports regarding police shootings, which first gained exposure when San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick first elected not to stand and then knelt during play of the national anthem.
No individual player has elected not to stand for the anthem, notably after the league reached out to the player's union to discuss meaningful ways they could compromise on the issue while respecting First Amendment rights, but several teams have done collective gestures. The Celtics held hands on Tuesday and later that night, members of both the Rockets and Knicks locked arms across team lines in a show of solidarity during the anthem.
Knicks and Rockets lock arms during the National Anthem. pic.twitter.com/JPp4LA2heG
— ⓂarcusD2.0 ツ (@_MarcusD2_) October 5, 2016
Warriors forward David West revealed this week that he has been protesting the anthem for years, but so far no player has gone beyond the collective gestures. Whether that's due to preseason coverage or a result of conversations between the league and its players is unknown.