Hawks' Thabo Sefolosha renews call for police accountability in return to New York
NEW YORK — The full measure of what the consequences will be for both Thabo Sefolosha and the New York Police Department officers who took him to the ground, breaking his leg, are still to be determined. Sefolosha has filed a $50 million lawsuit against the city of New York, after a jury took just 45 minutes to acquit him early this month of charges that Sefolosha had engaged in disorderly conduct and resisted arrest — in essence, had brought the violence upon himself.
The overlay of a real, all-too-common story of excessive force used by police against a minority with the familiar rhythms of an NBA calendar has made for some surreal aspects to this story. For instance, Sefolosha's coach, Mike Budenholzer, became something else during Sefolosha's trial: A character witness.
Standing in the hallway under Madison Square Garden, speaking with reporters in the same city where he'd been taken to the ground and severely injured for nothing more than standing near a crime scene, Sefolosha laughed when asked if he'd ever had a basketball coach testify for him before, and what it meant.
"Yes, but I think from the very start," Sefolosha said of Budenholzer. "Bud is a special person. He's a great basketball coach, but off the court he understands that life is a lot bigger than just basketball. Since I've been around him, I've realized that about him. And then him taking the time to come and testify during the preseason, during a busy schedule, it meant a lot to me."
The problem the NYPD has now is precisely who they chose to assault that April night. In Sefolosha, they've activated a thoughtful, forceful advocate against police brutality. The tried-and-true methods of villainizing him didn't work at trial, and they aren't likely to get help in the court of public opinion, either.
Sefolosha returned to the court during the preseason. It appears, for now, that the extensive damage to his body — a broken fibula, multiple ligament tears in his knee, and a ligament separation in his ankle — won't end his career.
Then again, Sefolosha was a scratch one night after playing 19 minutes in the season opener against the Detroit Pistons. He'd come out of it fine, but with an eye on the long-term, he'll need to carefully manage his way back to full-time play, each restriction an unwelcome intrusion into his mind of that April night.
"It's really tight after games," Sefolosha said of his ankle. "So it's really more because we don't know how it will be the next two, three months. So I think right now, taking precautionary steps to make sure I stay healthy three, four months from now."
Meanwhile, he's left to consider whether the Hawks might have capped a surprise season that saw them finish atop the Eastern Conference in the regular season with an NBA title to match if he'd been around to match up with players like LeBron James and Jimmy Butler.
But a funny thing about the experience: It tied player and coach together in a way that no one could have anticipated.
"I think we develop relationships with players throughout our careers, as assistant coaches, and now I'm fortunate enough to be a head coach," Budenholzer said. "You're probably constantly standing up and pushing someone's cause. Whether it is in a coaches meeting, or for more playing time, or practice. And this obviously is different. But you develop relationships with them on and off the court."
It's easy now to take what Budenholzer did for granted. You shouldn't. In the immediate aftermath of the incident, Budenholzer stood by his player, rather than creating a safe distance, and demonstrated something to the rest of the Hawks as well. It is impossible to imagine it won't impact those relationships going forward. But Budenholzer doesn't see it as a risk. Not knowing Sefolosha as he does.
"I think it's something that Thabo has handled very well," Budenholzer said. "He's of the highest character. And to come back here and answer questions is something that we all expected. We're more focused on the game, to be honest with you, while being respectful of everything Thabo's had to do this summer, and in the past couple weeks. But we're focused on the Knicks and playing tonight."
Except Sefolosha wasn't playing. He sat on the bench, giving him time to think about the experience about 20 blocks away, something Sefolosha said he'd been replaying in his mind every day since.
He's more than an individual victim looking for retribution, too. Asked if he is more cynical about police after the incident, he sounded like a statesman.
"More realistic, probably," Sefolosha replied. "And I think, having a platform as an NBA player, it's important for me to speak. Police have a tough job. And big responsibility with that job. But at the same time, they have to be accountable for how they interact with people. People spoke about the training, and that's probably a good place to start."
And in his mind, the video that earned him an acquittal needs to be in place far more often when police and civilians interact.
"I think so," Sefolosha said. "Definitely, with the body cameras, and things like this. In my case, and in many cases we can see throughout the country, taping and being an eye of what happened definitely helps."
If the twin tasks of rehabbing and casting a light upon police excess was overwhelming Sefolosha, he didn't show it Thursday night. He took stock of where he is — on offense in both battles — and smiled.
"I'm in a good place. It's always good to be back on the court, with a group," he said. "And looking forward to the season, I didn't know if I'd be able to be play, and I played a few nights ago. It's great to be focused on that."