An Oklahoma lawmaker threatened to pull tax benefits for the Oklahoma City Thunder if players were to kneel during the national anthem before Saturday's game.
Rep. Sean Roberts (R-Hominy) posted a statement Friday afternoon making the threat and equating the Black Lives Matter movement to "Marxism" and trying to "destroy nuclear families."
The Thunder will play the Utah Jazz at 2:30 p.m. at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida, in first NBA seeding game since the regular season was suspended on March 11 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Thunder did not respond to The Oklahoman's request for a response as of Saturday afternoon.