Meyers Leonard apologizes for antisemitic slur, grateful to Bucks for second chance

The Milwaukee Bucks officially signed 30-year-old center Meyers Leonard on Wednesday to a 10-day contract prior to practice.

The 7-foot Leonard has not played since Jan. 9, 2021 while with the Miami Heat. In March 2021 Leonard was suspended for a week and fined $50,000 by the NBA for using an antisemitic slur while broadcasting live during a video game.

Miami traded him to Oklahoma City as soon as the suspension was over, and he was waived shortly after that. He has since met with rabbis in Florida, Illinois and California and done community service work.

“I think Meyers has been really, really diligent, conscientious about engaging with the Jewish community, acknowledging that there’s no place for antisemitism or antisemitic slurs or any kind of hate speech,” Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer said. “The genuineness with how he’s talked to us about it, he’s talked publicly, we feel like he’s a person of high character that has owned and tried to make this an educational opportunity for himself and others. So, we’re hopeful that he’s in a good place and we want and seek out people with high character. I think Meyers is somebody that fills that.”

The Bucks come out of the all-star break with Giannis Antetokounmpo managing a right wrist sprain and Bobby Portis set to return after spraining his right knee Jan. 23.

Leonard met with the local media for the first time Wednesday evening.

Here is a transcript of a just a portion of his nearly 20-minute question-and-answer session, edited for clarity and length.

Q: It's been a long road since you were last in the league due to the suspension for using an antisemitic slur and injury. What has it been like for you to wear an NBA uniform again?

Leonard: It’s a mixed bag of emotions, for sure. It’s certainly the hardest two-year stretch I’ve ever had in my life, as an adult, as a man. The truth is – let’s just cut to it – I made a really big mistake, the biggest mistake of my life. And it was an extremely difficult time because, first of all, just let me say to anybody who’s listening, I’m incredibly sorry. It was an ignorant mistake.

If anyone’s followed what I’ve been up to off the floor in the Jewish community, I think they’ll see pretty clearly that  I’ve tried to go just even above and beyond to show my heart and who I am, and that I’m very remorseful and I wanted to make it right day after day, week after week, coming up on two years.

So, the mistake happened, that was right in the midst of a shoulder surgery and then also an ankle surgery. Unfortunately during ankle surgery there was also a bit of a nerve issue that happened in surgery. So it’s been a long road, like I said incredibly difficult. The hardest times in my life.

However, there’s also the other side of it. I’ve learned so much about myself as a man, about the Jewish community, just maturing in general. Also, spending a lot of quality time with my wife. Now I have my son Liam, he’s eight months old. I always try to look at life glass half full, but obviously there was times when it was very, very, very dark. I wanted to give up. Frankly there was times I wanted to run away. I’ve been very fortunate, let’s say, I guess financially, but that would have been the coward’s way out, to run away and say I’ve made enough money, I want to go start my life elsewhere.

I felt like I owed it to anyone who’s ever believed in me, my family, my son, to make this right. I remember one day, the next morning after everything was kind of breaking down around me and I felt my world was collapsing, I looked in the mirror and I said, ‘You better go make this right.’ Show the world, show the Jewish community your heart and learn and do everything in your power, in my power to just show them I’m very remorseful. Now here I am, obviously, it’s…pretty hard to believe.

You know, I don’t hate anybody. But, like I said, it was a difficult road. But I’ve made a lot of amazing relationships in the Jewish community and like I said, spent some quality time with my family, tried to rehab myself and feel pretty darned good about where I’m at.I’m so incredibly thankful for the Bucks organization, (general manager) Jon Horst and (governor) Marc Lasry, the other owners and everybody. To take a chance on me like this, I guess, it takes a lot of courage. I plan on speaking on everything that I’ve done here while I’m standing here and I think people will hear that and hopefully; I guess my only hope is that they’ll see this and they want to give me a second chance, maybe show me some grace. That’s all I can do. I can promise you this, I’ll be standing up on the sideline and if I get in there I’ll play as hard as I can. And I plan on trying to connect with the Jewish community and just the community in general in Milwaukee because it seems so genuine here. Everybody I’ve met is so kind.

Q: What can you say to those who do not want to give you a second chance, or believe you should have one?

This is a tricky question. Frankly as I’ve learned about myself and this situation entirely, I can’t please everybody. I have to just, I guess, rely on the work that I’ve done, hoping they can do, I guess, a quick search and see speaking with ESPN’s Jeremy Schaap (for an extended interview).

I plan on, even though it’s only a 10-day for now, I hope it gets extended beyond that, let’s see what happens, I plan to meet with people in the Jewish community here in Milwaukee. I’m not just checking boxes and moving on. That is not who I am.

I’m so thankful to the Bucks organization but technically to the city of Milwaukee. I sense that this is a very welcoming community and again, it’s a tricky situation, but all’s I can say is I’m extremely thankful, very grateful, hopeful for grace and forgiveness. All’s I can do is how my heart, speak from my experience and try to lead with love.

Q: On the court, how can you fit with the Bucks?

First of all I’m thankful to know at this point now they’ve had their eye on me for a couple years now. All’s you gotta do is look how Brook (Lopez) plays. If I can mirror or try to be a version of that, that helps.

I’m going to try to soak in everything that I can. I shoot the ball – that’s what I do. I feel like I communicate very well on the defensive end. I try to be a floor general back there. You’ve got a guy like Giannis, I mean, forget about it. The guy is unbelievable. All the pieces here, it’s just incredible to be a part of. I’m only a practice in but it’s just, I couldn’t be more grateful. I know I keep coming back to that.”

I haven’t played in two years and I had an injury that didn’t allow me to play pickup either. There is some rust that has to be knocked out, but I can’t run from the challenge. Eventually I had to get back out there. Just to know that somebody, frankly wanted me, feels good. So I’m going to give it everything I’ve got.”

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Meyers Leonard apologizes for antisemitic slur, grateful to Bucks