Thunder Players All Kneel During Anthem Even After Oklahoma Lawmaker Threatened To Impose Tax Penalties On Them If They Did

An Oklahoma state representative had a stern warning for Oklahoma City Thunder players if they chose to kneel during the anthem.

On Friday, Rep. Sean Roberts (R-Hominy) released a statement where he says NBA players who kneel during the National Anthem as an “anti-patriotic act” that shows “disrespect to the American flag and all it stands for.”

Via Yahoo Sports

By kneeling during the playing of the national anthem, the NBA and its players are showing disrespect to the American flag and all it stands for. This anti-patriotic act makes clear the NBA’s support of the Black Lives Matter group and its goal of defunding our nation’s police, its ties to Marxism and its efforts to destroy nuclear families.

Roberts threatened to reexamine tax benefits that the Thunder receive from the state if they decided to kneel to during the anthem .

“
If the Oklahoma City Thunder leadership and players follow the current trend of the NBA by kneeling during the national anthem prior to Saturday’s game, perhaps we need to reexamine the significant tax benefits the State of Oklahoma granted the Oklahoma City Thunder organization when they came to Oklahoma. Through the Quality Jobs Act, the Thunder is still under contract to receive these tax breaks from our state until 2024.

Perhaps these funds would be better served in support of our police departments rather than giving tax breaks to an organization that supports defunding police and the dissolution of the American nuclear family.”

Despite the threats from Roberts, every single Thunder player took a knee before their game against the Jazz on Saturday afternoon.