An emotional Jamal Murray has made a powerful statement after scoring a game-high 50 points to lead his Denver Nuggets side to a 119-107 victory over the Utah Jazz in the NBA playoffs.
In his post-game interview, Murray was overcome with emotion as he referred to his custom shoes whichsported the faces of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, who were both killed by police earlier this year.
"I just want to win," he says. "In life, you find things that hold value - things to fight for - and we found something worth fighting for as an NBA, as a collective unit.
"I use these shoes as a symbol to me to keep fighting all around the world. Like I said, they give me a lot of power to keep fighting.
"Even though these people are gone, they give me life. They help me find strength to keep fighting in this world and that's what I'm going to keep doing."
“I just want to win... in life you find things that hold value to you, find things to fight for, and we found things worth fighting for in the NBA as a collective unit.”
It was the first game back for both the Nuggets and the Jazz since the NBA player strikes following the police shooting of 29-year-old African American Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Blake, 29, was shot in the back by police while three of his children looked on. He was hit by four of seven shots fired at his back as officers attempted to arrest him, leaving him paralysed from the waist down.
News of the incident, and video of the shooting which went viral on social media, sparked a resurgence of protests against racial injustice and police brutality across the United States, as well as a mass player strike in the NBA and other sports.
The NBA players as a collective agreed to resume the season after coming up with several initiatives to help combat racial injustice and police brutality in America, including turning NBA arenas into polling stations in the upcoming US presidential elections.
Murray's 50-point explosion was the second time he reached the scoring landmark in three games, forcing a game seven of the Western Conference matchup.
Game seven is scheduled to take place on Wednesday (NZT) at 12.30pm.
