NBA players pay tribute on MLK day: 'We need to continue to speak out on injustices'

Wearing shirts to honour Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Denver Nuggets huddle afte being introduced before the first half of an NBA basketball game. (David Zalubowski/AP)

On Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the United States, NBA players across the league are speaking out in celebration of the man without whom many believe they couldn't have reached their dreams.

"What Martin Luther King meant to us as a whole is... you look around today's sports, life he started something that was cemented to today, that we still preach, that we still have the confidence to go out there to talk about to try to drive to be better. It all stemmed from him," said DeMar DeRozan in a video posted by the NBPA on social media.

"Take him away, we wouldn't be seeing the sports coming together. We wouldn't be able to see humanity coming together like we do now if it wasn't for Martin Luther King having a dream."

"The legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King is one of the reasons why we're here today," said Milwaukee Bucks guard Jrue Holiday. "To be able to play basketball and be able to have the freedoms that we have, it's one of the biggest parts of our history, something that we always need to remember and something we always will."

Beyond celebrating the man, several players preached the need to continue his legacy by fighting for equality and against systemic racism just as King did so many years ago.

"For us to continue his legacy I think we need to continue to speak out on the justices that we see in this nation every day," said Garrett Temple.

"As an NBA player or a person that has a little platform, it's my job, my duty to continue that. I trust and believe in everything that he stood for on the social justice front, and will continue to push his legacy as much as I can."

Here's are some of the tributes from the NBA on MLK Day:

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