(LifeSiteNews) – The NBA recently fined one of its players a whopping $40,000 for joking about his lack of sexual attraction for other men.
Brooklyn Nets’ star Cam Thomas had remarked during a February 9, on-court interview that his team had good-looking players, jokingly adding “no homo.” Thomas, 21, apologized that night but the league decided to impose the fine even after Thomas’s mea culpa.
On Twitter, Thomas posted: “I want to apologize for the insensitive word I used in the post-game interview. I was excited about the win and was being playful. I definitely didn’t intend to offend anyone, but realize that I probably did. My apologies again. Much love.”
“No homo” is a phrase men sometimes jokingly use to play off compliments or other comments made about other men. The NBA, however, accused Thomas of “derogatory and disparaging language” in its press release announcing the fines on February 10.
Thomas’ comments came at the conclusion of his team’s game with the Chicago Bulls. TNT’s Jared Greenberg had asked Thomas about recently-traded Nets player Spencer Dinwiddie saying that he and another player “might not be the best trade package, but we’re the best-looking. And the Nets need some help in that department.”
Cam Thomas: “We already had good looking guys, no homo.”pic.twitter.com/2SAsuq36EX
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) February 10, 2023
“I seen it, but I was like, ‘He just talking,’” Thomas responded. “We already had good-looking dudes, no homo.”
Foreshadowing the NBA’s fine, Greenberg responded: “All right, I’m sure the league office will enjoy that one.”
Thomas’s incident touched on a long-running controversy over comments from NBA players. In 2018, Denver Nuggets player Nikola Jokic similarly received a $25,000 fine for using the phrase “no homo.”
Just last year, the league also slapped a $40,000 fine on Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards after he called a group of men a racial slur preceded by the adjective “queer-a**” on Instagram.
Prior to that in 2022, “Outsports” published the results of an NBA fan’s investigation showing “78 tweets from 36 current and active NBA players on teams that are homophobic in language.”
As with other professional sports leagues, the NBA has embraced homosexuality and “pride” month. It notably joined boycotts of North Carolina after former Gov. Pat McCrory signed the controversial bathroom bill. In a statement, the league said it was dedicated to creating an “inclusive environment” and was “deeply concerned that this discriminatory law runs counter to our guiding principles of equality and mutual respect.” However, they’ve also been accused of hypocrisy given their work with China, one of the most totalitarian nations in the world.