Boston Celtics player Enes Kanter, who legally changed his name to Enes Kanter Freedom, stopped by Tucker Carlson’s Fox News show after becoming a U.S. citizen on Monday.
During his chat with Carlson, Mr. Freedom called on people in the U.S. to stop criticizing the country.
“So, I feel like they should just, please, they should keep their mouth shut and stop criticizing the greatest nation in the world and they should focus on, you know, their freedoms and their human rights and their democracy,” Freedom said.
It was a sentiment that Carlson, who has endorsed “white supremacist ideology” on his show, according to the Anti-Defamation League, agreed with.
You can watch a clip of their exchange below.
Freedom’s comments didn’t sit well with some who took to social media to call out the NBA player’s take.
On the flip side, conservatives praised the Celtics player’s call for people to not express their grievances with the United States and to instead “focus on, you know, their freedoms.”
Kanter Freedom has been in the news lately for criticizing China and Nike. In October, he called out LeBron James for not being more vocal about urging NBA players to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
So far, Kanter Freedom is averaging 4.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 0.2 assists per game for the Celtics in the 2021-22 NBA season.
