The NBA has begun preseason play and the league's players have joined together in making statements as the national anthem is played before games.
National anthem protests have made national headlines since San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick started it during the NFL preseason. Kaepernick began the protest because of racial and social injustice and police brutality.
The Houston Rockets, Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Sacramento Kings, Los Angeles Lakers and the Portland Trail Blazers joined the movement by interlocking arms, joining hands and throwing their arms over the shoulders over one another before their games this week.
Rockets guard James Harden said the move represented “a brotherhood” and that the message they are trying to send is about unity.
"Just standing together for something that we believe in; obviously we know what's going on around the world," Harden said. "We wanted to use our high power and noticeability to just go out there and make it aware that we're going to stand together, not just the two teams, but the entire league. We want to use our platform to show people that we're together and we're behind them in this. ... It's something that we'll continue to do, and we have a platform and we want to use it. It's just the beginning."