Recently, Miami Heat legend Udonis Haslem has come under severe scrutiny from fans due to his ‘f**k Bill Russell’ comment. The incident occurred when Boston Celtics legend Russell’s jersey was posthumously retired by the NBA, back in 2022.
This led to each NBA franchise decorating a rafter with the legendary jersey, something Haslem had an issue with. Speaking on the OGs podcast, Haslem had initially gone into detail about the comment. He claimed that it was made as a response to his players being forced to line up below a Celtics jersey, something the Celtics will never do for the Heat. Bam Adebayo, who was the guest during the specific episode, also had a similar claim.
While Haslem also revealed that the comment itself had nothing to do with disrespecting Russell, Adebayo sang a similar tune during a recent interview.
The Heat star claimed that the podcast members were well aware the story was bound to lead to controversy:
We knew they'd be upset but I felt it was a great story to share...We all respect Bill Russell for what he's done for us as players and as black people and all the stuff he had to go through. Just to clear that air before people start talking about that. We all know we respect that man
Hence, just like Haslen, even Adebayo and co. have all the respect for Bill Russell and understand the kind of impact he has made on the entire league and, Black rights.
Udonis Haslem had claimed his comment had nothing to do with Bill Russell
Haslem had outlined his love for the Celtics icon during the recent podcast appearance. He claimed that he had the utmost love for everything Russell had done. Instead of insulting the icon, he simply wanted to get a reaction from his own players, who were about to face one of their biggest rivals:
Will you ever see a Miami Heat jersey hanging in Boston’s rafters? Respect Bill Russell. Love him. Why the f**k he gotta hang in here? The s**t that come out them people mouth to us when we playing there? I might not take back what I said. Now that I think about it the way they the s**t that they” say to us?
Hence, on one hand, Adebayo thought that the story deserved to be told, especially due to the criticism Haslem received in response to the comment. The Heat icon on the other hand, completely understands the kind of impact Russell had on the league and did not want to insult the payer himself.
More must-reads: