Dion Waiters says he won't be skipping the anthem. (Getty Images)
On Friday night, minutes before tipoff of the Cleveland Cavaliers game against the Denver Nuggets, a story broke that Dion Waiters had revealed that he planned to skip the national anthem on account of his Muslim faith.
After the game, Waiters told reporters he wouldn't discuss the matter, saying "that's my religion, and I don't have to talk about that; I just want to talk basketball." He didn't confirm or deny anything. He chose not to answer, and the scrum ended immediately after. Then later, Waiters tweeted about the event, saying:
Lol I wasn't going to even say anything about the situation but whoever made that up about me & the national anthem is a damn lie....
— Dionwaiters3 (@dionwaiters3) November 8, 2014
I can't believe yall believe everything yall hear smh I guess ppl listen to anything now a days!!! I love everything about America!!!!!!!
— Dionwaiters3 (@dionwaiters3) November 8, 2014
I'm not here to entertain nobody but come on now I'm always out there for the national anthem if they gone write BS make sure it's correct.
— Dionwaiters3 (@dionwaiters3) November 8, 2014
I'm logging back off but the media need something to tlk about smh I just had to address the problem... Dnt believe that BS!!! ??
— Dionwaiters3 (@dionwaiters3) November 8, 2014Then things got weirder. Here was the update from the original reporter on Saturday:
I never recalled Dion missing a national anthem performance before, but he did mention he is rededicating himself to his religion. I then asked if he planned to continue this pre-game ritual the remainder of the season, and he replied, "Yes, I do."
Thus, the story was born.
Dion and I had a long conversation on Saturday and we came to the realization that we were thinking two different things.
When I asked if he planned to continue his pregame ritual, I meant did he plan on skipping the national anthem from here on out. He said he was under the impression that I was asking if he would continue his prayer and meditation before games.
Fair enough.
Waiters reiterated that he would be present during the national anthem. He called it a "simple miscommunication" and added that he's looking forward to moving past this situation.
via Cleveland Cavaliers guard Dion Waiters clarifies remarks regarding his pregame ritual | cleveland.com.
Then Sunday, reporters after practice spoke with Waiters and followed up. He was adamant that he's not missing the anthem in the future and that he loves his country.
Question: Do you want to explain what has happened the last 48 hours or so?
Waiters: It was a big miscommunication part, misunderstanding. Like I said, I love my country, I love the United States of America. I'd rather be here than anyplace else. It was a big misunderstanding on both parts.
via Transcript: Dion Waiters meets with media to discuss recent comments - Cleveland Cavaliers - Ohio.
Waiters went on to deny saying he missed the anthem Wednesday because of religious reasons, saying "I love the United States of America" two more times and continuing to chalk the matter up to a misunderstanding.
Outrage over the original interpretation of Waiters' intent wasn't significant, and it appears to have just been a miscommunication. So after a long, drawn out, and confusing miniature saga, it appears Waiters and the media are moving on.
Basketball Hot News
Chris Copeland’s surprising NBA career now includes even-more-surprising third act
Chris Copeland is leading an NBA team in scoring.
Chris Copeland – who never led his college team in scoring – is leading an NBA team in scoring.
Chris Copeland – who was cut from two European teams in two months – is leading an NBA team in scoring.
Chris Copeland – who didn’t make even an NBA summer-league team until age 28 – is leading an NBA team in scoring.
Early in a season where the sample is small enough to create more than a few oddities, this one of the more interesting twists. For one, Chris freaking Copeland is leading an NBA team in scoring. For another, there’s at least an outside chance this sticks.
Just two years ago, not even diehard NBA fans had heard of Copeland. He’d toiled overseas after a solid, though unspectacular, four years at Colorado. Then, he got a summer-league invite from the Knicks and played well. That led to a training-camp invitation from New York, and he played even better in the preseason.
For so long, Copeland’s primary goal was just making the NBA. His mom used to hang pictures with the word “NBA” around the house. In his first season in Europe, Copeland said he thought too much about the NBA, and that undermined his focus on the court.
But after the dream looked so distant, a 28-year-old Copeland made the Knicks’ roster two seasons ago.
Since 1970, 2,881 players have broken into the NBA. Just 36 made their debut at such an old age.
If Copeland’s journey ended there, it would have been a great story. He overcame long odds to fulfill his dream. Everyone could have gone home happy.
But Copeland didn’t stop there.
“As you reach one goal, you set new ones,” he said.
Copeland played well for the Knicks. He scored 8.7 points per game and finished sixth in Rookie of the Year voting – the highest place for someone so old since a 31-year-old Arvydas Sabonis ranked second in the 1996 voting.
Last offseason, Copeland signed with the Pacers, where his role shrunk drastically. After expecting to serve as the primary backup power forward, Copeland saw Indiana trade for Luis Scola to fill that role. Copeland ranked 14th on the team in minutes.
Again, if his story ended there, it would have been a satisfying one. Not only did Copeland topple all the obstacles he faced to reach the NBA, he had a little success while in the league. He’d always have that, even if his career fizzled.
But a funny thing is happening this season. The Pacers – who lost Paul George (to injury) and Lance Stephenson (to the Hornets) – need Copeland, and he’s delivering in a way he never has before. The forward is averaging a team-high 16.7 points per game.
Here’s every NBA team’s scoring leader, sorted by their highest-scoring season entering this year:
Unfortunately for the Pacers, such a reliance on a player of Copeland’s caliber has gone as well as you’d expect. Indiana is 1-6 – the NBA’s worst record, non-Philadelphia division – with its only win coming over the 76ers.
But that’s hardy Copeland’s fault, and it’s scary to think how much worse the Pacers would be without him.
Indiana’s offensive rating, a decent 106.6, with him on the floor collapses to a dreadful 75.6 while he sits. No other leading scorer can match that 31-points-per-100-possession boost.
Here’s each team’s offensive rating with its leading scorer on the court (blue) and off the court (yellow):
| Leading scorer | On | Off | Boost |
| Chris Copeland (IND) | 106.6 | 75.6 | +31.0 |
| James Harden (HOU) | 111.7 | 84.9 | +26.8 |
| Stephen Curry (GSW) | 107.3 | 87.8 | +19.5 |
| Anthony Davis (NO) | 105.1 | 85.6 | +19.5 |
| Greg Monroe (DET) | 108.1 | 90.5 | +17.6 |
| Gordon Hayward (UTAH) | 111 | 95.4 | +15.6 |
| LaMarcus Aldridge (POR) | 111.6 | 96.6 | +15.0 |
| Dirk Nowitzki (DAL) | 116.6 | 105.2 | +11.4 |
| Carmelo Anthony (NY) | 103 | 92.2 | +10.8 |
| Kevin Martin (MIN) | 105.1 | 95.5 | +9.6 |
| DeMarcus Cousins (SAC) | 106.4 | 98.1 | +8.3 |
| Marc Gasol (MEM) | 101.4 | 93.1 | +8.3 |
| LeBron James (CLE) | 103.6 | 95.9 | +7.7 |
| Isaiah Thomas (PHO) | 106.8 | 99.2 | +7.6 |
| Joe Johnson (BRK) | 111.6 | 105.2 | +6.4 |
| Tony Wroten (PHI) | 95.1 | 89.7 | +5.4 |
| Reggie Jackson (OKC) | 99.3 | 94.3 | +5.0 |
| Jeff Teague (ATL) | 104.6 | 100.1 | +4.5 |
| John Wall (WSH) | 102.5 | 98.4 | +4.1 |
| DeMar DeRozan (TOR) | 110 | 107.9 | +2.1 |
| Chris Bosh (MIA) | 108.8 | 106.7 | +2.1 |
| Jimmy Butler (CHI) | 109 | 108.2 | +0.8 |
| Jeff Green (BOS) | 107.1 | 107.1 | 0.0 |
| Kobe Bryant (LAL) | 103.1 | 104.5 | -1.4 |
| Blake Griffin (LAC) | 105.3 | 109.6 | -4.3 |
| Al Jefferson (CHA) | 95.6 | 100.1 | -4.5 |
| Tony Parker (SAS) | 95.5 | 100.1 | -4.6 |
| Nikola Vucevic (ORL) | 95.3 | 101.2 | -5.9 |
| Ty Lawson (DEN) | 96.3 | 102.4 | -6.1 |
| Brandon Knight (MIL) | 89.5 | 112 | -22.5 |
Not only is Copeland making such a large impact, he’s doing so while learning a new position. He’s mostly played small forward this year after working primarily as a stretch four.
At small forward, his strengths – pulling a big man to the perimeter, taking a defender off the dribble – are less pronounced, maybe even to the point he loses his edge. He’s versatile enough to post up smaller players and take advantage on the offensive glass, but his forte still seems to be playing stretch four.
Pacers coach Frank Vogel believes this experience – serving as a go-to option, playing a new position – will only better equip Copeland once he returns to a smaller role, and that should happen soon enough. Two of last year’s starters, David West and George Hill, have yet to play this this season and are expected to return this month.
When they do, will Copeland maintain his status as the team’s leading scorer?
West (14.0 points per game last season) and Hill (10.3) could take the mantle, and so could Roy Hibbert (10.8), but none of those three returning starters seems particularly great fits in a go-to role at this point. Rodney Stuckey, who averaged 13.9 points per game for the Pistons last season, was a trendy pick to lead Indiana in scoring, though he’s battling his own injury issues.
I’d take the field over Copeland (or any individual), but Copeland has put himself squarely in the mix.
How did someone who doubted his ability to play in the NBA until he actually put on a Knicks jersey come this far?
It’s easy to see how all those setbacks motivated Copeland to reach the league. It’d seem a chip on his shoulder would take him only so far once in the NBA, though.
But Copeland, who said he thinks daily about the lessons he learned in Europe, insists his pre-NBA years have helped him succeed in the league just as much as they helped him reach it.
“If I didn’t play overseas, if I got a real shot early,” Copeland said, “I would have failed.”
Instead, he’s thriving.
Copeland has joined just eight others who’ve played three seasons in the NBA after breaking in at such an old age – Pablo Prigioni, Fabricio Oberto, Billy Thomas, Pat Burke, Zeljko Rebraca, Dean Garrett, Sabonis and Charlie Criss.
In the final season of a two-year, $6,135,000 contract with the Pacers, Copeland, now 30, will again have to convince someone to sign him this summer. But his big numbers this season should ensure that happens.
What could have been a cup of coffee in the NBA has turned into a career.
“I don’t know if this is the best I’ve played. I think I can play better than I have,” Copeland said. “But we’ll see.”
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