LeBron James, Naomi Osaka and More Athletes React to Derek Chauvin's Conviction: 'Accountability'

Eric Todisco
·5 min read
LeBron James, Naomi Osaka and More Athletes React to Derek Chauvin's Conviction: 'Accountability'

Prominent sports figures have been sharing their reactions to Tuesday's guilty verdict against Derek Chauvin for murdering George Floyd, which sparked nationwide protests and a reckoning about racism and police brutality.

Minneapolis jurors found Chauvin, 45, guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter. He was taken away in handcuffs and will go directly to jail. He will be sentenced in eight weeks.

Listen below to the episode of our daily podcast PEOPLE Every Day for more on Derek Chauvin's conviction.

"ACCOUNTABILITY," Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James wrote on Twitter.

"Justice served on all counts. Good," said NASCAR's Bubba Wallace. "Still a ton of work to do. Continue to rest peacefully #GeorgeFloyd."

Retired WNBA star Renee Montgomery said, "Let's make this the new normal. Accountability is served #GeorgeFloyd."

"Justice and Accountability! Things I never thought I would see. There's much more work to do, but this is an amazing start working toward the reform this country NEEDS!" wrote Minnesota Timberwolves star Karl-Anthony Towns.

RELATED: Mariah Carey, Kerry Washington and Others React to Guilty Verdict in Derek Chauvin Trial: 'History'

The verdict came nearly a year after Floyd, 46, a Black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis for allegedly spending a counterfeit $20 bill, died facedown on the ground with his hands cuffed behind him as Chauvin, a white officer, pinned his knee to Floyd's neck for about nine minutes.

Floyd's murder spawned protests and riots across the country last year. Many sports leagues, organizations and players took a public stand supporting the calls for racial justice.

Splash George Floyd, at left, and Derek Chauvin

ESPN Films/YouTube Trailer for 144

Michael Reaves/Getty Members of the Miami Heat kneel before their game

Some of those participating athletes, including Naomi Osaka and Megan Rapinoe, reacted to the verdict on social media and discussed the urgency of combatting police brutality.

"I was going to make a celebratory tweet but then I was hit with sadness because we are celebrating something that is clear as day. The fact that so many injustices occurred to make us hold our breath toward this outcome is really telling," tweeted Osaka.

Rapinoe tweeted, "Sending love and strength to Minn today, to the family and community of #GeorgeFloyd and so many others. Whatever happens, #derickchauvin killed George, we know this. Let's continue to fight for a world where this doesn't happen. #DefundThePolice#BlackLivesMatter."

In addition, the NBA, WNBA, MLB, NFL, NHL, MLS and more sports organizations all released statements addressing the guilty verdict.

Atiba Jefferson/NBAE via Getty; Julian Finney/Getty; Gareth Cattermole - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Lebron James, Naomi Osaka, Megan Rapinoe

Outside of the sports world, President Joe Biden addressed the guilty verdict, saying it was "a giant step towards justice in America," but adding it is still "not enough."

"Black men, in particular, have been treated throughout the course of our history as less than human. Their lives must be valued in our nation. Full stop," Biden said, recognizing that no amount of progress or justice would bring Floyd back to his grieving loved ones.

In remarks before Biden spoke, Vice President Kamala Harris urged Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which has already passed in the House of Representatives.

"Today we feel a sigh of relief, still, it cannot take away the pain. A measure of justice isn't the same as equal justice," she said. "This verdict brings us a step closer, and the fact is, we still have work to do. We still must reform the system."

Celebrities like Cardi B, Kerry Washington, Mariah Carey and Mickey Guyton, as well as former President Barack Obama and Minnesota Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, all shared messages about the verdict.

RELATED VIDEO: Late Night Hosts React to Derek Chauvin Guilty Verdict: 'There Is More Work to Be Done'

RELATED: Barack Obama Hails 'Right Thing' After Derek Chauvin Convicted but Says 'We Cannot Rest' for 'True Justice'

Second-degree murder carries a sentence of up to 40 years in prison; third-degree murder has a penalty up to 25, and manslaughter carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.

The presiding judge, Peter A. Cahill, has wide discretion in how he imposes the sentences. It's unclear whether Chauvin's status as a first-time offender will result in a shorter sentence.

According to the New York Times, the recommended sentence in for a first-time offender found guilty of second- or third-degree murder is 12 1/2 years in Minnesota. The recommended sentence for manslaughter is 4 years.

To help combat systemic racism, consider learning from or donating to these organizations:

  • Campaign Zero (joincampaignzero.org) which works to end police brutality in America through research-proven strategies.

  • ColorofChange.org works to make the government more responsive to racial disparities.

  • National Cares Mentoring Movement (caresmentoring.org) provides social and academic support to help Black youth succeed in college and beyond.

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest Stories

  • Sterling steadies after strong British activity data

    Data showing British businesses recorded their fastest growth in activity in nearly a year helped the pound steady against the dollar on Tuesday, after touching its lowest in five months the day before, but it remained under pressure against the euro. European data was also better than expected and the common currency at one point rose 0.2% against the pound to 86.43 pence, matching its previous day's three-month high, though these moves also failed to hold. Euro/sterling has traded in a tight range for months, but broke out on Friday when the euro climbed 0.65% after Bank of England Deputy Governor Dave Ramsden said the risk of British inflation getting stuck too high had receded and it might prove weaker than the BoE's most recent forecasts.

  • BBC Apologizes After Reporting That “Derogatory Comments” About Trans People Could See J.K. Rowling Fall Foul Of New Hate Crime Law

    EXCLUSIVE: The BBC has apologized after suggesting that J.K. Rowling’s remarks about transgender women could put her on the wrong side of a new hate crime law in Scotland. In an April 2 story that centered on the Harry Potter author, BBC Scotland reported that the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 means …

  • Nimisha Priya: Family of Indian nurse on death row in Yemen to seek pardon

    Indian nurse Nimisha Priya will be executed unless the victim's family accepts "blood money" to pardon her.

  • Silicon Valley and Hollywood worlds collide as David Ellison bids for Paramount

    David Ellison, 41, would not be the first rich guy to arrive in Hollywood with a fat bank account and dreams of making movies, though the son of billionaire Oracle founder Larry Ellison boasts the rarest of attributes for a budding media mogul: a Silicon Valley pedigree. In an industry where many get their start fetching coffee or moving props, Ellison spent summers writing computer code for his father's software company and getting insights on the movie business from Pixar Animation Studios co-founder Steve Jobs. Ellison is orchestrating a multi-step transaction that would result in the merger of his independent studio, Skydance Media, with Paramount.

  • Emergency Declared After Landslides in Central Ecuador

    A state of emergency has been declared in Alausi, in the province of Chimborazo, Ecuador, due to the damage caused by landslides triggered by heavy rain over the weekend.According to the Ecuadorian emergency services, the heavy rainfall had increased the flow of a creek in the southern region of the province, resulting in several roads being washed out, isolating a village.The landslides affected 55 families, destroyed 11 homes, and collapsed several buildings and bridges, they said.The national secretary of risks, Jorge Carrillo, said that 67 emergencies were reported across the region over the weekend, with 31 of them being landslides.Footage released by the Ecuadorian Armed Forces shows people being helped across a river. Credit: Ecuadorian Armed Forces via Storyful

  • This Is The Reason Why People Living In Cities Are At Higher Risk Of Alzheimer’s Disease

    There are a lot of benefits to living in a city but it can be harmful for your health

  • GE Aerospace lifts 2024 profit forecast on strong sales of engine parts, services

    GE Aerospace on Tuesday raised its full-year profit forecast on strong demand for jet-engine parts and services as carriers keep their older planes in the air to tide over a shortage of new commercial aircraft. The company now expects 2024 operating profit of $6.2 billion to $6.6 billion, compared with its earlier forecast of $6 billion to $6.5 billion. Since then, Wall Street analysts have been bullish on the prospects of the aerospace business, with some citing the dominant lead of CFM International, GE's joint venture with Safran, as a supplier to Airbus' A320neo family of jets, over competing engine maker Pratt & Whitney.

  • Israel military strikes northern Gaza in heaviest shelling in weeks

    Israel bombarded northern Gaza overnight in some of the heaviest shelling in weeks, causing panic amongst residents and flattening neighbourhoods in an area from which the Israeli army had previously down its troops, residents said on Tuesday. Army tanks made a new incursion east of Beit Hanoun on the northern edge of the Gaza Strip, though they did not penetrate far into the city, residents and Hamas media said.

  • Get ready for more affordable Victoria Beckham – the designer has teamed up with Mango

    It will be wearable yet sophisticated, and is shoppable in just a few weeks

  • Trump poised to clinch $1.3 billion social media company stock award

    Donald Trump is set to secure on Tuesday a stock bonus worth $1.3 billion from the company that operates his social media app Truth Social, equivalent to about half the majority stake he already owns in it, thanks to the wild rally in its shares. The award will take the former U.S. President's overall stake in the company, Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), to $4.1 billion. While Trump has agreed not to sell any of his TMTG shares before September, the windfall represents a significant boost to his wealth, which Forbes pegs at $4.7 billion.

  • One of the World’s Best Scotches Owes Its Success to Aliens, Pirates, and Spaceships

    Ardbeg is a whiskey to savor.

  • Sleep paralysis demons - and why they’re different to nightmares

    It sounds like the start of a horror film: a shadowy figure at the end of your bed, a faceless presence sitting on your chest. It doesn’t matter which of these terrifying scenarios plays out when you wake up from a deep sleep, they all have one thing in common: you can’t move, run away or cry out for help. You are fully conscious, yet you are frozen to the spot and unable to escape your sleep paralysis demon. So what is going on?

  • UC Berkeley Students Hold Gaza Protest

    Echoing similar protests at elite US educational institutions, students at UC Berkeley in California gathered on April 22 to demand a ceasefire in Gaza and to call on the university to end connections with companies linked to Israel.The UC Berkeley Divestment Coalition said it was joining students across the US in “demanding that their universities divest billions of dollars from weapons manufacturers profiting from the Palestinian genocide in Gaza.”Protesting students were seen pitching tents and holding signs saying that they would hold an “encampment” on campus until the university divested from Israel-linked companies.A spokesperson for UC Berkeley told local news that the university had no plans to change its investment policies and practices.This footage by the Party for Socialism and Liberation shows students chanting while carrying signs and Palestinian flags. Credit: Party for Socialism and Liberation via Storyful

  • Police Chasing 'Armed' Ex-Cop Suspected of Killing Ex-Wife, Girlfriend and Abducting 1-Year-Old Child

    An adult female was pronounced dead after being shot outside a West Richland, WA. school on April 22

  • Doctor Who Fans Should Start Preparing Now For The 'Most Devastating Finale' Ever

    There will be tears.

  • Euro 2024 squads expanded to 26 players after motion passed at vote

    England and Scotland will be allowed to select 26 players for the European Championship this summer

  • Victoria Beckham x Mango: the 8 must-have buys from summer dresses, beach bags and sandals

    Victoria Beckham releases new collaboration with Mango — Joe Bromley has the key pieces to shop before summer

  • Snellgrove relishing chance to lay down Olympic marker

    Hannah Snellgrove is in the condition of her life heading to the Semaine Olympique Francaise and knows the event will act as her biggest marker ahead of her Olympic debut.

  • Uefa reveals Euro 2024 referees - including VAR at centre of Nottingham Forest row

    Michael Oliver and Anthony Taylor will officiate at Euro 2024, while Stuart Attwell and David Coote have been listed as VARs

  • Madonna faces another lawsuit over late starts on Celebration tour

    Fans in Brooklyn have accused ‘Like a Prayer’ singer and Live Nation of ‘false advertising’