Story by
"That could have been me" - Ex-NBA player was "horrified" to see the death of George Floyd
- Story by
- "That could have been me" - Ex-NBA player was "horrified" to see the death of George Floyd
It was May 2020, around three months into one of the darkest chapters in human history, catalyzed by the COVID-19 pandemic, when one of the most consequential events that would forever define that chapter happened: the death of George Floyd.
In May of that year, a Minneapolis police officer named Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd's neck for nine minutes while Floyd repeatedly said, "I can't breathe." He ultimately died, with his last words becoming a rallying cry against police brutality.
Advertisement
And, as a predominantly black league, the NBA and its players were among the most vocal opponents of this incident. However, some took a longer time to process the harrowing turn of events, such as Thabo Sefolosha.
A week after Floyd's death, he was still shaken to his core, having watched what Chauvin did and the inaction of the other officers in a video of the incident.
"I was just horrified by what I saw," Sefolosha said in an article by ESPN. "That could have been me."
Advertisement
How the NBA reacted
In March 2020, a similar incident happened when 26-year-old medical worker Breonna Taylor was shot dead in her apartment in Louisville, Kentucky, sustaining six gunshots after police officers raided her home to look for evidence against her boyfriend.
It reached only a boiling point when Chauvin killed Floyd. His death reignited the Black Lives Matter movement and sparked protests across the globe.
NBA players reacted strongly, with many expressing anger at systemic racism, speaking out on social media and attending protests at a time when human contact could prove fatal. Like his peers, Sefolosha was outraged.
Advertisement
"I'm mad, for sure," Sefolosha said. " Nobody should have to go through this in this time..Black people have given up so much and done so much for this country. It's hurtful to see it this way."
With the bubble season ongoing, LeBron James expressed his disappointment with the lack of progress . He said this happened in 2013 when Erick Gardner suffered a similar death and muttered the same last words as Floyd's.
Others protested using different methods. Donovan Mitchell wore a bulletproof vest bearing the names of black Americans who were victims of police brutality. Kyrie Irving bought a house for Floyd's family .
Advertisement
Not just a few bad apples
Sefolosha played in the NBA for 14 years, suiting up for five different teams and averaging 5.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists. Floyd's death brought up a traumatic encounter that the Swiss national had with law enforcement near the end of his ninth season.
In early April 2015, the then-Atlanta Hawks player and his teammate Pero Antic were arrested outside a Manhattan nightclub following an incident that saw NBA player Chris Copeland get stabbed. During the arrest, the officers broke his right leg.
Advertisement
"I think every time you see a police officer in this country, for some reason, you always feel beneath," he said . "But definitely after what happened, it's something that will scare me probably for life."
Having lived in America for many years and witnessed similar incidents, Sefolosha was convinced that his, Taylor's and Floyd's experiences were not isolated cases, saying that police brutality was systemic and a deeply ingrained culture in American law enforcement.
"People talk about a few rotten apples," Sefolosha said. "But you know, in my experience and from what we're seeing, I think it's deeper than that as a culture that's deeply rooted in it…I think it's really ... part of a culture where it's deeper than just a few bad apples."
Advertisement
Sefolosha last played in 2020, when all of these unfolded. He, Taylor and Floyd were victims of police brutality. Many Black Americans and immigrants continue to endure the same. Only a fortunate few, like Thabo, make it out alive.
Related: "We're hunted" - LeBron James was outraged seeing the death of George Floyd in 2020
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on May 8, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
