The players for the Milwaukee Bucks have released a collective statement following their boycott of the NBA playoff game against the Orlando Magic on Wednesday evening, a cancellation the Milwaukee team attributed to the need to focus on racial injustice in the United States.

“Over the last few days, in our home state of Wisconsin, we’ve seen the horrendous video of Jacob Blake being shot in the back seven times by a police officer in Kenosha, and the additional shooting of protestors. Despite the overwhelming plea for change, there has been no action, so our focus today cannot be on basketball,” a player told reporters after the game was cancelled, speaking on behalf of the team.

Another player continued with the statement, adding: “When we take the court and represent Milwaukee and Wisconsin, we are expected to play at a high level, to give maximum effort, and hold each other accountable. We hold ourself to that standard, and in this moment, we are demanding the same from lawmakers and law enforcement. We are calling for justice for Jacob Blake and demand the officers be held accountable. For this to occur, it is imperative for the Wisconsin State Legislature to reconvene after months of inaction, and take the meaningful measures to address issues of police accountability, brutality, and criminal justice reform.”

“We encourage all citizens to educate themselves, take peaceful and responsible action, and remember to vote on November 3rd,” he concluded.

The thing about sports is that it’s one of the most uniting forces on the planet. People of all races, religions, and backgrounds come together over sports more than almost anything else. It’s there that we’re more willing to embrace one another either in celebration of a team or, if playing on it, bringing a team to victory.

You would figure that professional athletes like those in the NBA would understand that. You also would figure that the very league that essentially wrote “Black Lives Matter” and related phrases on every allowable surface would appease players but it didn’t.

This is why I’m positive that this isn’t about black lives, it’s about the attention and more importantly, the false injection of self-sacrifice in order to legitimize the movement.

What you’re meant to see if a bunch of high-profile NBA figures walking away from glory and fame in order to bring attention to a massive problem. While there’s definitely a relationship problem between the black community and the police, to say that there’s a massive problem is, frankly, a lie. The myth of an epidemic of police shooting black men is just that…a myth. It happens, but not to the extent mainstream media or activists would have you believe.

This isn’t about equality. If it were, then the players would know full well that it’s sports that bridges divides and would push that more people come together to both watch and play. Instead, they focused in on a divisive event and promoted a divisive movement.

There is no focus on injustice. It’s a focus on a narrative and NBA players walking out only gives all the attention to said narrative. If the narrative only divides the populace, then they can expect their actions to only cause more injustice down the line.