Miami Heat and Boston Celtics players took a knee during the national anthem prior to tip-off Wednesday ... with both teams releasing a powerful message following the Jacob Blake decision and unrest in D.C.
The Celtics reportedly held a players-only meeting during warmups ... presumably to figure out how to address the current status of the country and whether the game would take place.
The result -- a joint statement from both teams explaining their decision to play.
"2021 is a new year, but some things have not changed," the players said in a statement.