While we await the final cuts to be made on the USA Basketball roster and Kyle Kuzma’s place on the team is uncertain, the third year forward for the Los Angeles Lakers decided to make a statement while he has the opportunity of representing the United States on a global stage.
Kuzma wrote a message of awareness about the ongoing fires in the Amazon rainforest on his shoes during this morning’s exhibition game against the Australian national team, which the United States won 102-86. Scores of the Amazon, the world’s largest rainforest, have been burning down and gaining worldwide attention in recent days.
Kuzma, who is a native of Flint, Michigan, hasn’t been shy to use his platform to try and raise awareness to things that are important to him. And like several players young players in his age group, he’s finding it easier to speak on topics outside of sports than people who came before him.
Although LeBron James is now one of the most vocal public figures and professional athletes when it comes to speaking out about issues outside of sports, it didn’t come easy early in his career. But with him doing so as the face of the NBA later on in his career, he paved the way for players that may not be stars such as Kuzma to speak out in issues they believe in.
