Kristi Toliver handles the ball during a Washington Mystics game against the Minnesota Lynx. The team has decided not to play its game tonight against the Atlanta Dream.

Lorie Shaull / Flickr

Updated 9:01 p.m.

Wednesday night’s WNBA game between the Washington Mystics and Atlanta Dream has been canceled as professional basketball players across the country protest the shooting of Jacob Blake.

Players initially intended to play, but changed their minds close to the 7 p.m. start time. Atlanta Dream’s Elizabeth Williams read a statement on ESPN stating that after speaking with representatives from both teams, it was decided that neither would play tonight’s game and would instead “kneel, lock arms and raise fists during the National Anthem,” Williams said.

“We stand in solidarity with our brothers in the NBA and will continue this conversation with our brothers and sisters in all leagues and look to take collective action,” Williams said. “What we have seen in the last few months and most recently with the brutal police shooting of Jacob Blake is overwhelming, and while we hurt for Jacob and his community, we also have an opportunity to keep the focus on the issues and demand change.”

Williams called on fans to go out and register to vote, adding that “if you truly believe that Black Lives Matter, then vote.” She ended on a promise that members of the team will continue to use their platform to speak on injustices against Black people and demand action for change.

When asked what went into the decision, the Mystics’ Ariel Atkins told ESPN “we wanted to make everyone feel like they were supported and understanding that this isn’t just about basketball. We aren’t just basketball players. And just because we are basketball players doesn’t mean that’s our only platform. We need to understand that when most of us go home we still are Black.”

Atkins and her teammates each wore a lettered shirt that when put together spells Blake’s name, each with holes and red stains on the back meant to signify where police shot Blake seven times.

On Twitter, players and other local professional athletes voiced their support for the team.

In an interview, Mystics head coach Mike Thibault reinforced that the decision was made by players and coaches on the Mystics and other teams. Part of the reason for attending tonight’s game, he said, was to keep the conversation around systemic racism alive.

“It became a situation where our players felt like if we’re not going to take the last stand or make the final stance when are we ever going to do it?” Thibault said.

Earlier on Wednesday, the NBA postponed multiple playoff games after the Milwaukee Bucks refused to play their game with the Orlando Magic in protest of Blake’s shooting,  The New York Times reported. The Magic later released this statement: “Today we stand united with the N.B.A. office, the National Basketball Players Association, the Milwaukee Bucks and the rest of the league condemning bigotry, racial injustice and the unwarranted use of violence by police against people of color.”

Twenty-nine-year-old Jacob Blake was shot by Wisconsin police earlier this week. His father reports he is currently in stable condition. The incident has triggered a backlash of protests not unlike those that followed the death of George Floyd, with parts of Kenosha, Wis., where Blake is from, engulfed in flames. During protests on Tuesday night, a shooting left two people dead and one injured. The Wisconsin National Guard has been deployed and authorities have issued a city-wide curfew.

This story has been updated with additional comments from players and coaches, and the headline has been updated to reflect that this is a strike, not a boycott.

Filed Under: Jacob Blake, sports, washington mystics,