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NBA Player Fined For Saying he Isn’t Homosexual During TV Interview

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2 years ago

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The NBA has fined Cam Thomas, Brooklyn Nets guard, $40,000 for using “derogatory” language following the team’s win against the Chicago Bulls.

Thomas was interviewed on the court by TNT, along with new teammate Spencer Dinwiddie.

Two days prior, Dinwiddie had made a joke to the media about the recent Kyrie Irving trade, saying that while the Nets may not have acquired the most talented players, they did get the best-looking one. The trade involved Dorian Finney-Smith moving to Brooklyn.

“And the Nets needed some help in that department,” Dinwiddie said. When asked by TNT about Dinwiddie’s comment, Cam Thomas said after Thursday night’s game, “We already had good-looking guys, no homo.”

WATCH:

Dinwiddie was joking about how the Dallas Mavericks received the best player in Irving in the trade, while the Nets got “the best-looking” players. This remark echoed a similar comment he made a few days earlier when he was introduced as a member of the Nets.

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The use of the phrase “no homo” caused controversy among LGBT activists, who accused Thomas of being homophobic and using a gay slur. As a result, the Nets guard was forced to apologize on Twitter.

Thomas wrote on Twitter: “I want to apologize for the insensitive word I used in the post-game interview. I was excited about the win and was being playful. I definitely didn’t intend to offend anyone, but realize that I probably did. My apologies again. Much love.”

See his apology below:

Despite the unnecessary apology, Thomas likely wanted to quickly move on from this minor controversy and concentrate on helping the Brooklyn Nets reach the playoffs. However, the NBA has managed to make the situation even more significant than it needed to be.

The NBA fined a 21-year-old rookie, Cam Thomas, $40,000 for using the phrase “no homo” in a joke. Although this amount may not be significant for some NBA players, Thomas is still on his rookie-scale contract, earning $1.96 million per year as the 27th pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, according to Real GM. This fine is equivalent to a two-percent pay cut for him, not including New York’s high taxes.

It’s noteworthy that the NBA, which is often described as “woke,” has made a big deal out of a minor issue.

Thomas is now among the numerous NBA players who have made comparable anti-gay jokes over the years that have been blown out of proportion.

In September 2022, Anthony Edwards, the standout shooting guard for the Minnesota Timberwolves, found himself embroiled in an anti-gay controversy due to a comment he made on an Instagram story. Edwards directed the remark at a group of men he saw standing together on the street while he was driving by.

β€œLook at these queer a** n***ers,” Edwards said as he filmed the group of men on his Instagram story.

In 2018, Nikola Jokic, the current back-to-back MVP and one of the most popular NBA players, was fined $25,000 for making anti-gay comments. Jokic made the remarks in jest while joking about the size of then-Chicago Bulls center Wendell Carter Jr. after the two players faced off.

“No homo, he’s longer than you’d expect,” Jokic said postgame.

NBA PR released the following statement on Twitter, see below.



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