Meyers Leonard has been charged with a $50,000 fine by the NBA, along with a one-week suspension due to the anti-semitic slur he used while being live on Twitch.
Miami Heat center Meyers Leonard recently took the media by storm after he was found using an anti-semitic slur while live-streaming Call Of Duty: WarZone on Twitch, where he has over 60,000 followers.
At one point during the stream, Leonard was heard saying “F***** cowards, don’t f****** snipe at me you f****** k*** b****,” an offensive slang which is used against the Jewish people.
Alongside the fine and suspension, Meyers Leonard to take part in cultural diversity program
The clip, a day after the stream was live, went viral all over the internet on Tuesday and also came under the radar of the NBA and Miami Heat and the clip of Leonard using the slur was reviews by both.
While the player himself issued a public apology, the franchise had announced on the same day that Leonard would be indefinitely away from the rest of the squad.
Two days after the incident, the NBA has decided to slap Leonard with a fine of $50k on the player, along with suspending him from all activities for one week, as an official statement from the Heat confirmed.
“Today, the NBA announced its discipline of Meyers Leonard, which included the maximum allowable fine of $50,000, a suspension from all HEAT activities for one week, and requiring that he participate in cultural diversity training. While we remain hurt and disappointed by what he said, we are encouraged that Meyers has started to take the necessary steps to educate himself about why his comments were so offensive. We will continue to communicate with Meyers and his representatives while he remains away from the team.”
“Meyers Leonard’s comment was inexcusable and hurtful and such an offensive term has no place in the NBA or in our society,” the NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement.
Alongside the fine and suspension, Leonard has spoken to Anti-Defamation League representatives and will also take part in a cultural diversity program, a course that provides cultural, racial, and sensitivity training.
“We accept that he is genuinely remorseful,” the commissioner went on, “we have further communicated to Meyers that derogatory comments like this will not be tolerated and he will be expected to uphold the core values of our league — equality, tolerance, inclusion and respect — at all times moving forward.”
