Ethics CasesSport

Cases · National Basketball Association · 2020

The Milwaukee Bucks' 2020 Playoff Boycott

On August 26, 2020, inside the NBA's pandemic "bubble" in Florida, the Milwaukee Bucks refused to take the court for a playoff game, protesting the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The NBA postponed all games that day, and players in the WNBA, Major League Baseball and Major League Soccer also refused to play. After meetings, the NBA and its players' union agreed to resume the playoffs with commitments to a social justice coalition, arenas used as polling places and voting promotion. The case raises questions about athletes' power, labor action, contracts and the effectiveness of sports protest.

By Tanner Simkins, editor

Timeline

  1. Jacob Blake is shot by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
  2. The Bucks refuse to play Game 5 against Orlando; the NBA postpones three games.
  3. WNBA, MLB and MLS games are also called off.
  4. The NBA and players' union announce commitments to social justice measures.
  5. The playoffs resume.
  6. Prosecutors decline to charge the officer.

The ethical issues

  • Athletes' power: using games as leverage.
  • Labor: a strike without union approval and contract obligations.
  • Effectiveness: whether protest produced change.
  • Workplace and solidarity: players' collective decisions.
  • The bubble: playing while advocating for justice.

Stakeholders

StakeholderInterests & obligations
Bucks playersJustice and their careers.
Other NBA playersSolidarity and the season.
NBA ownersRevenue and values.
Jacob Blake and his familyAccountability.
Broadcasters and sponsorsContracts.
FansGames and the cause.

The case

In 2020, after the COVID-19 pandemic halted the season, the NBA resumed play in a quarantined “bubble” at Walt Disney World in Florida. Many players had debated whether returning would distract from protests over the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. “Black Lives Matter” was painted on the courts, and players wore social justice messages on their jerseys.[1][3]

Background

The facts of the shooting were disputed from the start, which shaped how the protest was received. Officers had been dispatched to a call at the address, and police officials said they knew of a pending warrant for Blake.[5] According to the prosecutor’s later account, Blake admitted holding a knife, and officers and witnesses said he turned toward the officer just before the shooting. The officer said he believed he was about to be stabbed.[5] The officer fired seven shots, four into Blake’s back and three into his side.[5]

Kenosha saw days of unrest after the shooting. On August 25, as protests and fires continued, armed civilians patrolled parts of the city, and two men were fatally shot by a 17-year-old from Illinois. He was later acquitted of all charges by a jury.[5] The Bucks’ decision came the next day.[1][3]

The rules and governance

The bubble season rested on agreements between the NBA and the players’ union about health protocols and the resumption of play.[1][4] When the Bucks refused to play, the league and the union jointly announced that all games that day were postponed. That treated the protest as a matter for joint decision rather than league discipline.[5] The agreement to resume on August 29 likewise came as a joint statement of commitments, not a change to the collective bargaining agreement.[4]

The legal question of the shooting followed its own path. The local prosecutor declined to bring state charges in January 2021.[8] The Kenosha County District Attorney relied on an investigation by the state Division of Criminal Investigation, which involved more than 30 agents. He also relied on an independent review by a former Madison police chief, who concluded that the officer’s use of force was justified under Wisconsin law and the department’s training.[8] The district attorney framed his decision around the burden of proof: he did “not believe the State could prove beyond a reasonable doubt” that the officer “was not acting lawfully in self-defense or defense of others.”[8] He also wrote that the shooting was “a tragedy,” and that his role was limited to whether criminal charges were “legally appropriate,” not to critique police training.[8] In October 2021, the Justice Department said it would not pursue federal civil rights charges, citing insufficient evidence that the officer willfully violated federal law.[5]

The shooting

On August 23, 2020, Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, was shot seven times in the back and side by a police officer in Kenosha, Wisconsin, about 40 miles from Milwaukee. He was seriously injured and left paralyzed from the waist down.[3][5] Officials said Blake had a knife; he said he intended to put it in his car.[5] In January 2021, the local prosecutor declined to charge the officer.[5]

The boycott

On August 26, the Bucks did not take the court for Game 5 of their first-round series against the Orlando Magic. Guards Sterling Brown and George Hill read a statement: “Despite the overwhelming plea for change, there has been no action, so our focus today cannot be on basketball.”[2][3] The statement called on the Wisconsin State Legislature to reconvene “and take up meaningful measures to address issues of police accountability, brutality and criminal justice reform,” and urged people to vote.[2]

That demand had a concrete target. Wisconsin’s governor, Tony Evers, had already called the Legislature into a special session on police use of force. His order, signed the day after the shooting, cited Blake’s shooting along with the killings of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, and asked lawmakers to take up bills on use-of-force standards and “no-knock” warrants.[6][7] The session convened on August 31, five days after the boycott. The Senate journal records it opening at 12:01 p.m. under the chief clerk.[6] Republican leaders, who controlled both chambers, gaveled in and out in less than 30 seconds without debate or votes. They left the session open and pointed to a task force they said would consider legislation.[7] Evers called it “a letdown to all the people who are asking us to lead.”[7] NBC News reported that the session came after the Bucks players’ call for police reform.[7]

The Bucks’ owners said, “Although we did not know beforehand, we would have wholeheartedly agreed with them.”[3] Orlando’s players had not been given advance notice.[3] The NBA postponed all three games that day. WNBA games, several MLB games and five MLS matches were also called off.[3]

The resolution

At a meeting of players, the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers reportedly voted not to continue the season.[1] After further meetings, the NBA and the players’ union agreed to resume the playoffs on August 29.[4] The league committed to a social justice coalition, to working with officials to turn team-owned arenas into voting locations for the 2020 election, and to advertising promoting civic engagement in playoff games.[4]

Aftermath

The protest spread across U.S. sport, with boycotts in the WNBA, MLB and MLS.[5] The voting commitment was the most concrete part of the deal to resume, and the Bucks’ own arena became an example. The City of Milwaukee made Fiserv Forum an in-person early voting site from October 20 to November 1, 2020, and the Brewers’ Miller Park also opened for drive-through early voting.[9] A Bucks executive said the pandemic had “added another barrier to voting for vulnerable communities.” The mayor said he knew of no other city using both a major league ballpark and an NBA arena for early voting.[9] The city’s election director noted that 3% of mailed ballots in the April election had been rejected for problems such as late return or missing signatures. She presented in-person early voting as a way to avoid that.[9] The shooting also drew national political attention. Joe Biden visited Kenosha to meet members of the community, and President Donald Trump visited despite the governor and mayor asking him to reconsider.[5]

The core dilemma

The Bucks used their most powerful tool — refusing to work — to protest an issue of public concern, without notifying their opponents or the league. Was this a legitimate exercise of collective power, and what did it achieve?

Competing values

  • Protest vs. contract.
  • Solidarity vs. individual choice.
  • Immediate action vs. strategic planning.
  • Symbolism vs. concrete outcomes.

Strongest arguments

For the boycott: players are workers who chose to withhold their labor on a matter of conscience. It drew attention and produced commitments from the league.

Against or for caution: the action was taken without consulting opponents or the union, and critics said the concessions were modest compared to the demands for police reform.

Applying the frameworks

Rights

A rights lens emphasizes players’ freedom of expression and their right to refuse work in protest, especially when the issue concerns the safety and equal treatment of people like them. It also considers the rights of opponents, fans and broadcasters who had contractual expectations, and the decision not to give Orlando advance notice.

Virtue

Virtue ethics looks at the courage of acting on conviction during a playoff run, and at the solidarity shown by other teams and leagues. It also asks whether the protest was prudent and well-directed, and whether the commitments that followed matched the gesture.

Utilitarian

Consequentialists weigh the attention and commitments the boycott generated, such as arenas as polling places and civic advertising, against the costs to the competition, broadcasters and fans. They also ask whether visible protests change public opinion or policy, which is hard to measure.

Walk it through: the Simple Decision Model

  1. Spot the issue. You are a Bucks player on August 26, 2020, hours before Game 5, after the Kenosha shooting. The stakeholders include you, teammates, the Magic, the league, owners, fans, sponsors, and communities affected by police violence. The codes in play are your contract, the bubble agreements and the collective bargaining agreement.
  2. Gather facts. What are the facts known so far? What do teammates think? What are the possible consequences under your contracts?
  3. Test options. Options: (a) play and speak out afterward; (b) refuse to play; (c) refuse to play and make specific demands. Weigh the impact of protest against obligations to opponents and the competition.
  4. Check codes and law. Has the team given opponents and the league fair notice? Are your demands specific and achievable?
  5. Decide and document. Record the decision and the reasons in a public statement.
  6. Communicate and follow up. Communicate with the league, the union and the opponent, and follow up on the commitments you seek.

What’s settled and what’s contested

  • Settled: the boycott; the postponements; the league’s commitments.
  • Contested: the boycott’s lasting impact; whether players should have ended the season.

Why this case matters

The Bucks’ boycott was one of the most significant athlete protests in U.S. history, showing the collective power players hold.

Key terms

Agency
An athlete’s ability to make decisions and act independently about their body, career and voice.
Stakeholders
Everyone with something at stake in a decision: athletes, coaches, parents, officials, fans, employees, sponsors, media, communities and regulators, including the less visible ones.
Brand as ethical promise
A brand is more than a logo: it is a promise to stakeholders about values and conduct, and it is broken when actions contradict it.
Framing
How the choice of angle, language and emphasis shapes the way a story is understood.

Definitions from the Ethics Cases glossary.

Discussion questions

  1. Were the Bucks justified in refusing to play without notifying their opponents or the league?
  2. Is a sports boycott an effective form of protest? What did this one achieve?
  3. What obligations do players have under their contracts during a protest?
  4. Should players have ended the season, as some proposed?
  5. How should leagues measure whether their social justice commitments are meaningful?

Sources

  1. 2020 NBA Bubble — Wikipedia
  2. Milwaukee Bucks players' statement following boycott of Game 5 — NBA.com
  3. NBA playoff games called off amid player protests — NBA.com (Associated Press)
  4. NBA, NBPA issue joint statement on social justice and racial equality — NBA.com
  5. Shooting of Jacob Blake — Wikipedia
  6. Senate Journal, August 2020 Special Session (Aug. 31, 2020), including the governor's executive order calling the session — Wisconsin Legislature
  7. Wisconsin special session on police reform lasts less than a minute. GOP not interested. — NBC News
  8. Report on the Officer Involved Shooting of Jacob Blake (January 2021) — Kenosha County District Attorney (copy hosted by Kenosha News)
  9. Fiserv Forum to serve as early voting site for 2020 general election in Milwaukee — NBA.com (Milwaukee Bucks release)