Amar’e Stoudemire is sorry for crossing the line between funny and foul.
The former NBA star used Twitter on Thursday to apologize for the homophobic joke he told the previous day during an interview with Israeli website Walla Sports. Stoudemire and his team, Hapoel Jerusalem, offered this explanation for his comments.
When Walla Sports asked Stoudemire how he’d react to having a gay teammate, he said he’d go to great lengths to avoid him.
“(I) would shower across the street, make sure my change of clothes are around the corner, and … take a different route to the gym,” Stoudemire said before adding, “I mean, there’s always a truth within a joke.”
Critics have blasted Stoudemire, whom the NBA fined in 2012 for using a gay slur against a Twitter user. John Amaechi, who revealed his homosexuality after his NBA career ended, was chief among them.
While Stoudemire starts with these words of contrition, his road to becoming what he calls a “huge supporter of civil rights for all people …” will be long and serious.
Thumbnail photo via Jerome Miron/USA TODAY Sports Images
