Jimmy Butler's request to wear no name on back of NBA jersey to be reportedly denied

There has been a lot of discussion regarding the Black Lives Matter movement and initiatives to support the same inside the NBA bubble. Several players will be wearing league-approved messages on the back of their jerseys. On the other hand, some players such as LeBron James and Anthony Davis have decided to skip the gesture.

Miami Heat's Jimmy Butler is one player who had something else on his mind. Butler wanted to leave the namespace on the back of his jersey blank. As reported by Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press though, the NBA is likely to turn down that request.

Per sources, it appears as of now that Heat All-Star Jimmy Butler's request to wear no name on the back of his jersey at the NBA restart will not be honored. The NBA and NBPA struck deals on the messaging, but wearing of a name is part of the uniform player agreement.
— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) July 19, 2020

Expand Tweet

We'll have to wait and see how this plays out but everyone can certainly expect a reaction from Jimmy Butler if his request is turned down. Butler is one of the most vocal NBA players and that trait of his is unlikely to change inside Disney World.

Jimmy Butler gives reason behind unique NBA jersey request

Jimmy Butler has spoken to media on several occasions from Orlando

It was during one of his media calls that Jimmy Butler had revealed the request that he had put forward to the NBA front office.

"I have decided not to [put a message on my jersey]. With that being said, I hope that my last name doesn’t go on there as well. Just because I love and respect all the messages that the league did choose, but for me, I felt like with no message, with no name, it’s going back to who I was. If I wasn’t who I was today. I’m no different than anybody else of color, and I want that to be my message in the sense that just because I’m an NBA player, everybody has the same rights no matter what. That’s how I feel about my people of color."

Given Jimmy Butler's good intentions, expect a considerable backlash from players and fans alike if this rather simple request in turned down by the NBA.

Also read: Black Lives Matter - James Harden, Jrue Holiday, and others speak about the movement from the NBA bubble

Players unhappy with NBA's list of approved social justice slogans

LeBron James wasn't happy with the list of approved messages

Several players have gone ahead and complained about the choice of slogans available for putting on the back of the jersey. LeBron James himself has said that he'll be wearing his own name because the things he had in mind weren't there on the NBA's list of approved messages.

Norman Powell says he will wear "Black Lives Matter" on the back of his jersey but was very disappointed in the "limited" list that the league gave players to choose from.
— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) July 16, 2020