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Couple NBA Mega stars should speak up?
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Will Kobe, LeBron pass on Darfur?
By Dan Wetzel, Yahoo! Sports
Aug 7, 9:35 am EDT



BEIJING – The Chinese government was so frightened that Joey Cheek, the former Olympic medalist turned human rights advocate, would come to the Beijing Games and mention the murder of 400,000 Sudanese that it decided to revoke his visa.

They must be petrified then of Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, the two global sporting icons who are immensely popular in this basketball-mad country and are simply too big to silence.

Should either display the conviction they’ve flashed in the past in publicly denouncing the genocide in Darfur, then the Chinese could be humiliated by the attention on their decision to buy oil from, and provide arms to, the murderous Sudanese government.

Will they, though?

Or will the enormity of it all, the general chilling of speech at these bizarre games or the push by USA Basketball for Kobe and LeBron to focus first on winning gold, allow the moment to pass?

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The situation is so tense in totalitarian Beijing that Cheek, who won two medals as a speed skater at the Turin Games and then donated his prize money, time and boundless energy to the children of Darfur, is stuck back in Washington D.C. No less than President Bush is being lobbied to fight for the return of his visitation visa.

“What I see is a major push globally by the Chinese to suppress speech by any athletes anywhere,” Cheek said by phone Thursday. “Revoking my visa probably stands as an example to anyone in China who wants to speak about anything.”

James and Bryant probably don’t fear the Chinese. Bryant said he didn’t even know who Cheek was, let alone what happened.

They have been among the most outspoken of the major American athletes on the subject and are capable of generating a level of worldwide (and in-China) attention like few others.

Bryant cut a public service announcement a year ago on Darfur, demanding people to rise up and help (“Together we have the power to change the world”). James, in an interview with ESPN, echoed the sentiments (“We’re talking about lives lost”) and promised a bigger statement here in Beijing.

On Thursday, however, both shied away from bold pronouncements.

“No, not really,” Bryant said when asked if he had anything to say about Darfur.

“Basic human rights should always be protected,” James said before adding, “One thing you can’t do is confuse sports and politics.”

“I think the political guys are going to do what they need to do, that’s their job,” he added. “We are here to concentrate on a gold medal. Sports and politics just don’t match.”

Whether they continue that approach remains to be seen. Perhaps they are planning something big later in the Olympics. Perhaps they’ve decided to step back.

Or perhaps they’ll come to the realization of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity they have here and will grow emboldened.

“For certain, when the Olympics are over, their opinions won’t carry so much weight,” USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo said. “Right now, it is a hot button.”

But will Kobe or LeBron push it?