Miami Dolphins receiver Kenny Stills vacationed this offseason in Africa
Cheap Nick Chubb Jersey , led several teammates on a training trip to Nebraska and returned to find the NFL’s national anthem debate again at peak
volume.
”We’ve got to clean up how things are looking,” Stills said following the Dolphins’ first training camp practice Thursday.
The sixth-year pro is part of the debate because he kneeled during the anthem the past two seasons and has been vocal discussing social injustice issues that
inspired the protest.
Stills would prefer the league had no anthem policy so players could do as they wished, and said he’ll wait until a policy is set to decide what he’ll do
during the anthem this season.
”At some point before the season starts, the league and the players association are going to come to an agreement,” he said. ”And at that point I’ll
have a better idea what I’ll be doing.”
Last week the league and union issued a joint statement saying the two sides are still working on a resolution. Their statement came hours after The
Associated Press reported Dolphins players who protest on the field during the
anthem could be suspended for up to four games under a team policy issued last
week.
The Dolphins subsequently issued a statement saying all options regarding the team’s policy remain open.
On Thursday, coach Adam Gase said he doubted a Miami player would be suspended for protesting during the anthem.
”I mean, if anybody knew actual rules in the NFL, good luck suspending somebody,” Gase said. ”It takes about 5,000 things before anybody can get
suspended by a club.”
Gase said he doesn’t see anthem issue as potentially divisive for his team.
”I think they do a good job of when issues come up
Da'Ron Payne Redskins Jersey , they get together and hammer it out,” Gase said. ”These guys aren’t shy about speaking up. They’ve done a good job of making
sure, as a group, they talk through things.”
Three-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Jurrell Casey also plans to continue protesting, but wants people to quit seeing this as an anthem issue. The
Tennessee Titans lineman said he will continue protesting by raising his fist at
the end of the anthem.
”The biggest thing that we have right now is the way the justice system is set up for minorities,” said Casey, whose wife is an attorney. ”And that’s just
what the whole battle is about, trying to bring light to enlighten the things
that’s going on around the minority community.”
The league hasn’t been able to reach an agreement. On Wednesday, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said he’ll insist his players stand for the
anthem.
Stills’ reaction to Jones’ comments?
”I wouldn’t expect anything different,” Stills said.
Stills said he hadn’t spoken much with Dolphins owner Stephen Ross about the issue since last year. Ross didn’t attend the first day of training camp.
Stills tuned out the anthem debate this offseason by traveling to Victoria Falls
Marcedes Lewis Jersey , Kruger National Park and Cape Town, where he learned about African culture, went on safaris and tried bungee jumping. More recently,
he spent time in Lincoln, Nebraska, with other Dolphins wideouts and a receivers
coach he has known since he was in the 10th grade.
”The anthem stuff was becoming a really quiet, quiet topic,” Stills said.
No more. Defensive end Robert Quinn, who protested during the anthem while with the Rams last year, was asked following his first Dolphins practice what
the league should do about a policy.
”I’ll just say one thing: It’s called freedom of speech
Michael Gallup Jersey ,” he said. ”Sim.tpClipInfo > * { display: none !important; }.tpPlayer { display: none !important; }.tpReleaseList > * { display: none !important; }.tpReleaseModel > * { display: none !important; }.tpNavigation > * { display: none !important; }.tpSearch > * { display: none !important; }.tpCategoryModel > * { display: none !important; }.tpHeader > * { display: none !important; }.tpCategoryList > * { display: none !important; }ple as that.”
Quinn, Stills and others have been targets of criticism for their protests, which they believe have been misconstrued as unpatriotic.
But Stills was nominated by teammates last year for the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, a reflection of his standing in locker room. His latest
community project is with the nationwide OK Program, which mentors young black
men.
”I think I’ve done a good job of trying to figure out ways to continue to use my voice and platform for the right things,” Stills said, ”and put the messaging
back in the right direction.”
—
Utah had a four-point lead in the fourth quarter on Wednesday night when Donovan Mitchell missed a jumper and sailed above three Houston Rockets to grab
the rebound and finish with a nifty one-handed slam.
He did it right near the Jazz bench and his teammates went wild, cheering and pretending to fall backward on each other in awe.
Joe Ingles led the Jazz with a career-high 27 points, but it was the star rookie who provided the highlight of the night as the Jazz evened the Western
Conference semifinals 1-1 with a 116-108 win.
Ingles made a career-best seven 3-pointers and Mitchell added 17 points and a franchise rookie-record 11 assists for his first game this postseason where he
scored fewer than 20 points and didn’t lead the team in scoring.
But he certainly provided an emotional boost to his team with his highlight-reel worthy play. He smiled broadly when it was brought up postgame,
and said he was just trying to get the rebound on his miss when he made a
split-second decision.
”I just happened to be up there
Harold Landry Jersey ,” he said. ”So I said: `Why come down with it?”’
The Jazz squandered a huge early lead before using a big fourth quarter to regain control and head home for Game 3 on Friday in Utah with a chance to take
a series lead over the top-seeded Rockets.
Houston coach Mike D’Antoni said Mitchell was the key to the win even though he didn’t lead the team in scoring.
”He was breaking us down,” D’Antoni said. ”He was getting in there and was finding guys in the corner. He’s a handful whether he’s finishing or not.”
The Jazz were behind by two with eight minutes left before using a 16-2 run to pull away.
After trailing by 25 points at halftime of the 110-96 loss in the series opener, the Jazz jumped out to an early lead in this one and led by as many as
19 in the first half.
”Last game, we came out completely opposite. Tonight, they kind of caught us off-guard,” Houston’s James Harden said. ”We adjusted to it in that second
quarter, but we can’t get down 19 no matter who we’re playing.”
Houston regained the lead in the third quarter but couldn’t keep pace with the Jazz in the fourth as their normally potent offense went cold.
Harden had 32 points and 11 assists, and Chris Paul added 23 points as Houston fell to the Jazz for the first time this season after winning the first
five meetings.
Jazz coach Quin Snyder was pleased at his team’s balanced scoring effort on a night six players finished in double figures, and he raved about the
contribution of Ingles.
”Every time Joe has needed to step up his game, he has been able to
Isaiah Wynn Youth Jersey ,” Snyder said. ”He’s committed to that. He knew tonight he would need to make some shots and he was able to do it.”
Houston was down by one entering the fourth but Utah scored eight straight points on 3-pointers from Dante Exum and Jae Crowder before Mitchell’s dunk made
it 100-94.
Harden made a basket after that before Utah scored another eight straight points, with two 3s from Ingles, to make it 108-96 with 4 1/2 minutes left.
Harden ended a 2 1/2-minute Houston scoring drought with a 3-pointer about a minute later that was the start of a 9-3 run that got the Rockets within 111-105
with 1:46 left. But Rudy Gobert made one of two free throws before Exum put it
out of reach with a dunk.
Utah led by nine before Houston used a 16-5 run to go up 71-69 for its first lead since it was 6-5 with about seven minutes left in the third. The Jazz went
back up 86-85 by the end of the period.
After taking just four shots in Game 1 and finishing with 11 points, Gobert got going early Wednesday and had 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting by halftime. But
he was mostly quiet after the break, and finished with 15 points and 14
rebounds.
TIP-INS
Jazz: Snyder said before the game that he didn’t know when point guard Ricky Rubio would return. … Utah assistant Igor Kokoskov was hired as head coach of
the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday. … Ingles got a technical in the second quarter
for arguing with Paul.
Rockets: Luc Mbah a Moute had four points and four rebounds in his second game back after missing the first series after dislocating his right shoulder on
April 10. … Paul also received a technical for barking at Ingles. … Clint Capela
finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds.
THEY SAID IT
The notoriously low-key Harden when told by a reporter that he looked irritated by Utah’s defense on Wednesday: ”I look like that all the time. That’s
just my facial expression.”
UP NEXT
The series moves to Utah where Game 3 is Friday and Game 4 will be played on Sunday.
.
