Former NBA No. 3 draft pick Enes Kanter Freedom issued a warning to LeBron James and the NBA that he would expose them to the whole world. Kanter said in a social media post:
“I tried to warn you @NBA! Now you will get exposed in front of the whole world!! Today is a BIG day! Today, we are finally exposing the dirty relationship between the #NBA and #China in front of the U.S Congress and Senate.
“Today, we are going to expose how an American company can bow down to the biggest dictatorship in the world, and how the commissioner of the @NBA Adam Silver sells this Americana to an Evil Empire.
“Today, we are exposing all of those fake athletes who call themselves “more than an athlete.”
“Today, we are exposing @TheNBPA, who according to the #NBA players association, are working for the players and charge them thousands of dollars every month… but who do they REALLY work for?
“Let’s have some fun!”
Kanter Freedom then told Congress he was blacklisted from the league after he wore shoes with messages highlighting Beijing’s persecution of Tibetans and Uyghurs, prompting his team’s games to be banned in China.
He said he was pushed to speak out after meeting with a young fan at a basketball camp a few years ago.
He said:
“His parents called me out in front of everybody, and said, ‘How can you call yourself a human rights activist when your Muslim brothers and sisters are getting tortured and raped every day in concentration camps in China?’
“I was like, ‘I promise I’m gonna get back to you.”
He said he wore ‘Free Tibet’ on his shoes after other players wore “Black Lives Matter” on their shoes.
He continued: “Every Celtics game is banned in China. It literally took them 24 minutes – first quarter 12 minutes, second quarter 12 minutes – to ban every Celtics game on television.
’“They were pressuring me and my manager so much, I was like, ‘You know what, I promise: I’m never going to wear ‘Free Tibet’ shoes ever again.
“The next game, I wore ‘Free Uyghurs’ shoes.
“One of my teammates walked up to me and said, ‘You know this is your last game in the NBA, right? “You’re never gonna get any contract after this.’
“February came, I got released by the Celtics and it was over for me.”
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James shamefully pledged to not talk about China in 2019.
“I won’t talk about it again,” James told ESPN during the 2019 Hong Kong protests.
“I’d be cheating my teammates by continuing to harp on something that won’t benefit us.
“We’re trying to win a championship.”
I tried to warn you @NBA!
Now you will get exposed in front of the whole world!!Today is a BIG day!
Today, we are finally exposing the dirty relationship between the #NBA and #China in front of the U.S Congress and Senate.
Today, we are going to expose how an American company… pic.twitter.com/fl2z8g4Uke
— Enes FREEDOM (@EnesFreedom) July 11, 2023
I, Enes Freedom solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
I will continue to be the voice of the voiceless around the world.
Huge thanks to the U.S. government for giving me an opportunity to testify in front of our Congress and Senate. pic.twitter.com/mloPFiKCcx
— Enes FREEDOM (@EnesFreedom) July 12, 2023
