3:41 PM
The Boston Celtics center said he would be happy to speak to the Los Angeles Lakers star about the hypocrisy of Nike and James for not speaking out about human rights violations in China.
Freedom said he would love to sit down and talk to him. It's going to be very uncomfortable for him. I don't know if he wants that. I'll make him feel comfortable.
I'm here to educate him and I'm here to help him because it's not about money. It's about principles and values. It's about what you stand for. There are bigger things than money. If he stopped making money, his kids can have the best life ever.
It's time for athletes to stand up for what they believe in, not just in America, but all over the world.
Freedom, who changed his name to "Freedom" to celebrate his citizenship on Monday, has been critical of both James and Nike for not calling out human rights abuses against the Uyghur. He wore a shirt that said "Freedom for Uyghur" during his interview.
James was asked about Freedom's comments after the Celtics beat the Lakers. James said that Freedom was not someone he would give his energy to, and that Freedom walked by him in the hallway after the game.
Freedom, whose Celtics play the Lakers next Tuesday in Los Angeles, presented his side of the story when he was asked about that interaction Tuesday.
He was behind me after I left the court. Freedom explained that he stopped to take a picture with a kid, and that he was the one who walked past him.
He said that Nike is the biggest hypocrite company out there and that they stand for Black Lives Matter. They are for the Latino community. There is no Asian hate. They are with the community. China and some other countries remain silent when it comes to this. They are using these players to become the face of their sport, like ChristianoRonaldo for soccer, and some other athletes. They are becoming puppets.
"I feel like we need to be careful of what we wear, because there's so much blood or sweat or oppression on those items."
Other players have encouraged Freedom to bring Michael Jordan into the conversation as well, as he renewed his criticism of Jordan for remaining silent on these issues.
Black athletes in the league reach out to Freedom whenever he talks about Michael Jordan and other people. They are the ones giving me talking points and not many people know about it. I was one of the people who went out and protested when Black Lives Matter protests happened. I wanted them to know that I am with them, that I was wearing my jersey.
Some of the other players in the league are scared to say anything against Jordan or the other players, but they are reaching out to me and giving me talking points. He's standing up for what's right in America. Why don't you talk about Michael Jordan? He is only giving money, but he is not talking. He's afraid to speak up.
This season Freedom has been wearing shoes depicting people and places he has spoken out against, including Chinese Communist Party general secretary, Nike and James. He has used his shoes to promote causes.
He said that the idea for the shoe campaign came from his childhood in Turkey. He decided to raise awareness and break through to young people watching at home when he noticed that the star players were wearing shoes that were not normal.
Freedom said the important thing was to inspire the young generation. I think that was the best way to do it. There was nothing against the rule books.
Freedom told the NBA commissioner that he would comply with any league rules, after talking to Adam Silver about his shoes.
"If there's any rules that I'm violating, let me know." Freedom said that he would be the first one to follow. He said, "No, you're not violating any rules." Adam, you guys are telling us and encouraging us to stand up for what's right, not just in America, but all over the world. You guys encouraged me to talk about all the violations that are happening all over the world, right? He said, "Listen, you have the freedom to say whatever you want." I appreciated that.
Freedom spoke to the media for the first time in a while. In the first 13 games of the season, he played less than 10 minutes in two brief appearances as he sat third in Boston's center rotation behind Robert Williams and Al Horford. He posted a picture of a flip book with the caption "I will expose you off the court." He entered the game in the second half after Williams left with knee soreness, and has played in every game since.
In the wake of his social media post, Freedom said he spoke to Celtics coach Ime Udoka about his playing time, and Udoka assured him it had nothing to do with his political beliefs.
On Monday night, Freedom spoke on Tucker Carlson's show and said that Americans should stop talking about the greatest nation in the world and focus on their rights and democracy.
Freedom said Tuesday that he is a political person and focused on human rights.
There is a huge line between human rights and politics. I'm involved with politicians because I'm trying to help people. We are trying to create bills, we are trying to find ways to help those people, we are trying to boycott the Olympics, we are trying to put sanctions on some countries for violating human rights.
"Obviously, we are having our problems here, but people should definitely feel blessed to be in this situation."
