Since the start of the 2017-18 NBA season LeBron James said he would stand for the national anthem. Yet James has also praised others who have chosen to neal, such as NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick. According to ESPN’s Zach Lowe, James’ declaration had a n impact on the rest of the league. Lower said the NBA league office was relieved and assumed players would follow LeBron. Although some players linked arms during the anthem, there were not instances of players kneeling.