Spike Lee, Kyrie Irving wear pro-Palestinian outfits to NBA All-Star Game featuring first Israeli player

JTA – Deni Avdija scored five points and made four assists and one dunk in his first NBA (National Basketball Association) All-Star Game – the first All-Star appearance ever for an Israeli player. 

But while Avdija’s Team World squad fell short against the league’s top American players, his appearance continued to generate excitement for Israelis, who have viewed his success on the court as a matter of national pride. 

Avdija’s jersey featured an Israeli flag on the back, in keeping with the uniform for Team World. 

“I feel like when I come to play, I come with the entire nation, and it’s fun to show that it’s possible, even for a small country like us,” he said during a postgame press conference, in which most questions were asked and answered in Hebrew. 

Lebron James, too, was asked by an Israeli reporter about Avdija’s performance and about Israel during his own postgame availability. 

“I hope I inspire people over there not only to be great in sport, but to be better in general in life,” James said. “Hopefully, someday I could make it over there. Like I said, I’ve never been over there, but I’ve heard nothing but great things. I appreciate the question.” 

Some cultural events featuring prominent Israelis since the start of the war in Gaza have been subject to anti-Israel demonstrations. There were no disruptions at the All-Star Game, but two prominent fans wore outfits designed to show pro-Palestinian solidarity. 

Filmmaker Spike Lee wore a Palestinian flag-inspired outfit, with a keffiyeh-patterned sweater and flag badges on his bag strap. 

Basketball player Kyrie Irving, meanwhile, wore a T-shirt that said “Press” on the front. The shirt, produced by the company Wear the Peace, says inside that it is “dedicated to our beloved journalists in Gaza showing the world the truth”. Irving had previously worn the shirt to another NBA game. 

Irving, who was not playing in the All-Star Game, was traded to the Dallas Mavericks from the Brooklyn Nets in 2023 shortly after promoting an antisemitic film on his Twitter account and at first refusing to apologise for the tweet.