Victor Wembanyama
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San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama on Tuesday admitted that the recent actions of ICE in Minneapolis have left him unsure about his own safety as a foreign-born player.
While speaking to the media hours before the Spurs’ game against the Houston Rockets, Wembanyama — originally from France — was asked for his thoughts on the situation involving 37-year-old Alex Pretti. Pretti was shot numerous times and killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis. Moments before the shooting, Pretti was recording agents with his phone.
The 22-year-old began his response by revealing that that team’s public relations staff advised him on how to address the situation. He made it clear he would be choosing not to follow that advice, stating:
PR has tried, but I’m not gonna sit here and give some politically correct [answer]. Every day, I wake up and see the news and I’m horrified. I think that it’s crazy that some people might make it seem like, or make it sound like it’s acceptable, the murder of civilians is acceptable. Every day, I read the news and sometimes I’m asking very deep questions about my own life. But, you know, I’m conscious also that saying everything that’s on my mind would have a cost that’s too great for me right now. So it’s– I’d rather not get into too many details.
In response to a follow-up question, Wembanyama revealed how his own status as a foreign made him “concerned” about living in the U.S.
“I know I’m a foreigner,” he continued. “I live in this country. I’m concerned, for sure.”
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