Australia basketball’s first round of Pride was lauded despite some NBL players being reluctant to wear LGBTQ+ jerseys | basketball

The NBL’s first round of Pride still sends a strong message of inclusion, although several players are unwilling to wear a logo supporting the LGBTQ+ community, according to Australia’s national non-profit inclusion program Pride in Sport.

Several Cairns Taipans players are reportedly reluctant to wear a jersey with a rainbow logo during Wednesday night’s game against South East Melbourne Phoenix, the first game of the Pride round, citing their religious and cultural beliefs.

Taipans coach Adam Forde called the Pride round a “great initiative” and defended players’ freedom of choice. He said everyone is free to do what they feel comfortable with and will not be “segregated or excluded” because of it, the Herald Sun reported. Guardian Australia has reached out to taipans for comment.

An NBL spokesman said the league has not received any formal confirmation that players would not wear the jersey, although this has been widely reported and is expected. Players are still allowed to play with their regular jersey, the NBL said.

“Our position is not to force or mandate anyone to wear the jersey and we are not here to impose our views on anyone else. Our job is to love and support people without judgment,” the NBL spokesman said.

Lucas Lixinski, a professor of human rights law and fellow at the Australian Human Rights Institute, said any refusal to wear the rainbow logo was disappointing.

“It undermines something the Round is trying to achieve in that it shows that things in esports are not as welcoming or inclusive to LGBTIQ+ people and identities as esports is trying to present itself,” Lixinski said .

“But I don’t think anyone assumed that this was going to be an easy road and that everyone would be super ready. Men’s sports have a history of being very few people, and there’s a reason for that.”

In November, Melbourne United player Isaac Humphries came out as gay in an emotional speech to his teammates and made history by becoming the first Australian male basketball player and first player in the NBL to become openly gay.

Humphries said the Pride round is “another step toward a more comfortable and welcoming environment for the league and basketball.”

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Beau Newell, who runs Pride in Sport, which provided awareness training to players ahead of the NBL’s first round of Pride, wasn’t surprised that some players opposed the logo.

“It would be naïve to expect that we have every single player who just accepts it and wants to run with it right away, because as we’ve learned with other sports, players come from a variety of backgrounds, just like everyone,” Newell said.

Newell said some players’ reluctance to wear the jersey didn’t undermine the Pride round.

“We have to take a step back and acknowledge that this is the first time a Pride round has been held in the NBL and that just a very small handful of players saying they aren’t comfortable wearing the jersey doesn’t mean it that this is not success.”

Last year, Manly manager Des Hasler apologized on behalf of the club for the “poor” execution at a Pride shirt unveiling that led to seven players boycotting a game.

Hasler said none of the coaches or players were made aware of the kit before it was launched.