Steven Adams' OKC Thunder have had their Western Conference playoff match against the Houston Rockets postponed after threats to boycott the game to protest the police shooting of a black man in Wisconsin.
The NBA has decided to postpone all three games scheduled for Thursday (NZ time) after the Milwaukee Bucks refused to take the court for their game against Orlando Magic, which promoted senior officers to head towards the team's locker room when they learnt of the protest.
Some Bucks players warmed up before the game but were a no-show when the siren sounded, and Magic players then returned to the locker room.
That led to the Thunder, Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers and Portland Trailblazers to mutually agree to boycott their games, before the NBA stepped in to postpone the fixtures.
"F*** THIS MAN!!!! WE DEMAND CHANGE. SICK OF IT," tweeted Lakers superstar LeBron James.
Earlier this week, Jacob Blake was shot multiple times in the back by police officers in Wisconsin, sparking more protest and outrage in the US. It follows the death of George Floyd, who was killed while being choked on the ground.
Disturbing footage showed Blake trying to get into his van when a police officer started shooting him from close range. Blake's father says his son is now paralyzed from the waist down.
Milwaukee is roughly an hour away from where the shooting took place.
According to ESPN, team owners and NBA officials had no idea of the boycotts and players have called for a meeting to determine where to go from here.
The Bucks ownerership group confirmed thet had no idea of the protest, but say they would have supported the playing group if they did.
Adams' Thunder had won their last two games to level the series against the Rockets at 2-2.
The decision for the Bucks to protest came as a huge shock, as all the talk of a boycott had come from the Toronto Raptors.
Raptors coach Nick Nurse said the idea of a boycott of their upcoming series opener against the Boston Celtics was "on the table" after both teams met in the wake of the shooting.
According to reports, the feeling among the players was that they still wanted the match to go ahead, although this latest boycott may change things.
"Boycotting the game has come up for them as a way to try to demand a little more action," says Nurse. "That's really what they want.
"I think there's enough attention and not quite enough action, and that's what I can sense from the discussions is their disappointment."
Meanwhile the Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds won’t play their baseball game in protest, with other games set to follow suit.
