The Twitter account of the Boston Celtics posted, and then quickly deleted, an image of star player Kemba Walker wearing a “Don’t Tread on Me” Gadsden flag shirt.
The tweet was posted just prior to the Celtics game, showing Walker arriving at the arena in a yellow hat, green and yellow shoes, and a shirt with a “Don’t Tread on Me” Gadsden flag image prominently displayed on the back. The team deleted the tweet after facing backlash on social media.
“The boston celtics posting a pic of kemba walker in a neo nazi jacket is so aggressively on-brand for that city,” read one tweet in response to the image.
The Gadsden flag was a prominent symbol of the American Revolution, flown to represent resistance to an overbearing British government. In recent years, the flag has gained renewed popularity, becoming a symbol of the conservative Tea Party movement that helped push Republicans to historic gains in the 2010 midterm elections.
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But Walker was apparently unaware of any meaning behind the symbol, claiming that he only wore the shirt because he liked the color.
“Kemba Walker was asked about wearing this jacket which has a flag associated with far-right politics,” NBA reporter Jared Weiss tweeted. “His answer made it pretty apparent he has no idea what it means, saying he liked the colors and the way it looked. No message meant by it.”
https://twitter.com/JaredWeissNBA/status/1394873911339270144
“I have no idea. The colors looked good. It went with my sneakers. That’s all,” Walker said of the shirt.
Many NBA players have become active politically in recent years, though they have often promoted causes associated with the Left, such as the Black Lives Matter movement.
Another NBA star, James Harden, came under fire last year when he was spotted wearing a pro-police “thin blue line” face mask while Black Lives Matter protests were spreading across the country.
Similar to Walker, Harden claimed ignorance of the meaning of his attire.
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“Honestly, I wasn’t trying to make a political statement,” Harden said at the time. “I wore it because it covered my face, my beard.”
“I thought it looked cool. That was it,” he later added.
