Americans Support NBA Players Strike Following Jacob Blake Shooting By a Staggering 2-to-1 Margin: New Poll

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If President Donald Trump is planning to speak out against this week’s NBA players strike to rally the electorate, he might want to reconsider — based on the results of initial polling on the subject.

According to a YouGov survey of 7,425 Americans, support for the NBA players who went on strike to protest the police shooting of Jacob Blake is overwhelming. The poll finds that 45 percent of people “strongly support” the players, with another 12 percent saying they “somewhat support them.” Twenty-one percent of those polled “strongly oppose” the job action, while another 7 percent “somewhat oppose.” So overall, support beats out opposition by a more than 2-to-1 margin, 57-28.

The Milwaukee Bucks led the strike on Wednesday, as they did not come out for their playoff game against the Orlando Magic. That spurred the Magic and four other teams to sit out games that day. On Thursday morning, players voted to resume competition at some point this weekend.

President Trump has been highly critical of the NBA. When asked about the strike on Thursday, he said he didn’t know much about the particulars, but went on to bash the league as a whole.

“I know their ratings have been very bad, and that’s unfortunate,” Trump said. “They’ve become like a political organization, and that’s not a good thing. I don’t think that’s a good thing for sports or for the country.”

The NBA has been at the forefront of the social justice movement — with players such as LeBron James leading the way with actions such as the launching of a voters’ rights group. The Jacob Blake shooting took place in Kenosha, WI — less than 50 miles away from the Bucks’ home base. After they went on strike Wednesday, the team met with Wisconsin’s lieutenant governor and attorney general to discuss police reform legislation.