Sports come to a halt: NBA, WNBA, MLB, MLS postpone games as players protest Jacob Blake shooting

KISSIMMEE, Fla. — The NBA’s restart inside a restricted bubble at Disney World, which has proceeded smoothly for more than a month without any positive novel coronavirus tests, came to a screeching halt Wednesday when the Milwaukee Bucks refused to take the court for a playoff game against the Orlando Magic to protest the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis. The league announced the cancellation of all three games scheduled for Wednesday evening as a result.

The unprecedented decision to postpone the games was quickly followed by a similar decision by the Women’s National Basketball Association, which postponed three scheduled games across the state in Bradenton.

In Milwaukee, the Brewers announced they would not play their game Wednesday night against the Cincinnati Reds. The Seattle Mariners’ game against the San Diego Padres and the Los Angeles Dodgers game against the San Francisco Giants were also postponed.

The cancellations underscored an emerging new reality in big-time sports in which athletes are increasingly emboldened to express themselves on racial injustice and other social issues and leagues are finding ways to accommodate their views.