Silver: Standing for anthem the 'appropriate thing to do'

NBA commissioner Adam Silver has been supportive of his league's players taking public stands for social causes, but he hopes they continue to stand (literally) during the national anthem when the regular season commences next week.

Several NBAers have voiced their support for Colin Kaepernick's symbolic protest, but throughout the preseason, they have all remained on their feet for the playing of the anthem.

"I don't know if the players are organizing anything," Silver said at the NBA's Board of Governors meeting on Friday, as quoted by ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk. "All I can say is what we have seen in multiple preseason games so far is our players standing for the national anthem. It would be my hope that they continue to stand for the national anthem. I think that is the appropriate thing to do."

Kaepernick's much-publicized and proliferated kneel-for-the-anthem gesture came in response to continued instances of police violence - and, more broadly, institutional racism - against African Americans. Several teams during the preseason have made their own unified gestures, standing and linking arms together rather than kneeling.

The NBA office is hoping it can be part of a cooperative approach to promoting positive societal change, even going so far as to send the players a memo last month encouraging them to keep making their voices heard and using their platform to engage in constructive discourse.

''These ideas are based on the actions many of you have already taken or supported, including convening community conversations in NBA markets to engage young people, parents, community leaders and law enforcement in a candid dialogue,'' read the memo, which was signed by both Silver and players' union boss Michele Roberts.

"I have thought a lot about this, and Michele Roberts and I talked a lot about these issues," Silver said at the Board of Governors meeting. "There may be no organization in our society better positioned than the NBA and its players to try and have an impact on these difficult issues plaguing many of our cities. So aside from discussions around the anthem, it is my expectation that as we move beyond the collective bargaining (negotiating) process, that we and the players together will continue to address these issues and look for opportunities where we can really make a difference.

"Before there were issues around the anthem, I happened to be at the ESPY's this year when our four players stood up and made their point about the need for us to come together and work in our communities, and we have tried to build on their challenge ... to see what impact that we can have, what they can have as individual athletes and how we can contribute to that as the league together with our teams. I think we are making progress."