A New York basketball player will not travel to London for an upcoming international game because he believes he could be assassinated for his opposition to Turkish President Recep Tayy
By Greg Beacham, Associated Press
January 5 2019 8:38 AM
A New York basketball player will not travel to London for an upcoming international game because he believes he could be assassinated for his opposition to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Enes Kanter announced his plan on Friday night after the New York Knicks beat the LA Lakers 119-112.
The Knicks later said Kanter will not make the trip because of a visa issue.
Big W tonight as @Enes_Kanter finishes with 16 points & 15 rebounds. ( @MajorEnergy) pic.twitter.com/JozMl72bIF
Kanter will stay in New York while the Knicks travel to face Washington at The O2 arena in London on January 17.
He says he cannot travel anywhere except the US and Canada because “there’s a chance I could get killed out there”.
“Sadly, I’m not going because of that freaking lunatic, the Turkish president,” Kanter said.
“It’s pretty sad that all the stuff affects my career and basketball, because I want to be out there and help my team win.
“But just because of the one lunatic guy, one maniac, one dictator, I can’t even go out there and do my job. It’s pretty sad.”
Kanter has been a vocal critic of President Erdogan for years, once referring to him as “the Hitler of our century”.
