MINNEAPOLIS
\nMinnesota Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said the NBA team was \u201cheartbroken\u201d by events unfolding in Minneapolis, where federal agents shot dead a second US citizen amid the Trump administration\u2019s mass immigration crackdown.
\nAn emotional Finch spoke to reporters shortly before the Timberwolves took on the Golden State Warriors in Minneapolis on Sunday, a game postponed from Saturday when the city was sent reeling by the shooting death of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, less than three weeks after an immigration officer fired on Renee Good, also 37, killing her in her car.
\n\u201cAs an organization, we are heartbroken for what we are having to witness and endure and watch,\u201d Finch said.
\n\u201cWe just want to extend our thoughts, prayers and concern for Mr. Pretti\u2019s family, all the loved ones, and everyone involved in such an unconscionable situation in a community that we really love.\u201d The Timberwolves honored Pretti with a moment of silence that ended amid expletive-laced chants against ICE (US Immigration and Customs Enforcement).
\nWarriors coach Steve Kerr called it \u201cone of the most bizarre, sad games I\u2019ve ever been a part of\u201d after his team trounced the Timberwolves 111-85. Kerr, who said he felt the home team was \u201csuffering,\u201d has been an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump who had called the shooting of Good \u201cshameful.\u201d
\nOn Sunday he said it was time for Americans to appeal to their \u201cbetter angels\u201d in a era of extremism.
\n\u201cPeople are so angry. There should be an appeal to our better angels to look after one another and to recognize what\u2019s happening,\u201d Kerr said. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to decipher what\u2019s real and what\u2019s not, what\u2019s true and what\u2019s not true — people arguing over the exact same video and saying \u2018this happened, no that happened.\u2019\u201d
\nKerr said the loss of life is \u201cthe number one concern.\u201dWhen all the unrest settles down, whenever that is, those family members won\u2019t be returning home and that\u2019s devastating,\u201d said Kerr, whose university president father was shot dead in Beirut by Islamic militants in 1984.
\nBoth coaches praised the decision to postpone the game.\u201d Playing basketball just didn\u2019t feel like the right thing to do,\u201d Finch said. The NBA\u2019s Players Association issued a statement on Sunday saying players \u201cstand in solidarity with the people in Minnesota protesting and risking their lives to demand justice.\u201d
\nThe fraternity of NBA players, like the United States itself, is a community enriched by its global citizens, and we refuse to let the flames of division threaten the civil liberties that are meant to protect us all.\u201d
\nThe Timberwolves, along with the WNBA\u2019s Minnesota Lynx, the NFL\u2019s Vikings, MLB\u2019s Twins, NHL\u2019S Wild and Minnesota United of MLS, joined prominent Minnesota companies in signing an open letter calling for state, local and federal officials to work together in pursuit of a \u201cdeescalation of tensions.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MINNEAPOLIS Minnesota Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said the NBA team was \u201cheartbroken\u201d by events unfolding in Minneapolis, where federal agents shot dead a second US citizen amid the Trump administration\u2019s mass immigration crackdown. An emotional Finch spoke to reporters shortly before the Timberwolves took on the Golden State Warriors in Minneapolis on Sunday, a game […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-527927","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n