Steve Ballmer on Protests During Anthem: 'Players Should Express Themselves'

Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer said the NBA league office and owners "believe our players should express themselves" while discussing protests during the national anthem during an appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher Friday. 

The issue has raged on for the past two years, with President Donald Trump regularly taking aim at NFL players who choose to kneel or demonstrate in some way against racial injustice during the anthem.

NBA players have abstained from taking a knee during the anthem since Colin Kaepernick first sat during its playing in a preseason game two years ago. Players union executive director Michele Roberts offered a possible explanation in a November interview with Harvey Araton of the New York Times.

"I don't think the players are behaving this way because the league supports them," she said. "They're acting based on how they feel, though they do appreciate the way the league supports them."

As a part of the league's rulebook, NBA players are required to stand during the anthem. But many players have expressed themselves through other means.

"I feel like the guys in the NBA have done a really good job, since the players have spoken out on it, of just being vocal," Memphis Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley told Sam Amick of USA Today in October. "(They've been) showing you what their stance is, and what they're trying to do about it, and hopefully the mindsets and the gears change towards just being productive on that front."

NBA commissioner Adam Silver also spoke about the work toward social projects by NBA players in February, per NBA.com:

"As commissioner of the NBA, this is a legacy of important work that I've inherited, that I continue to encourage. These players are not just basketball players. They're multi-dimensional. They care about their communities, and they care about what's happening in their country. They then care enough to speak out, and sometimes at great risk to themselves, because it's not lost on them that there are some people who will disagree with them."

While the NFL and NFLPA continue to debate how to handle protests during the anthem, the NBA and its players have consistently represented a more unified front on the issue.