Local athletes, rest of sports world react to Derek Chauvin’s conviction in the George Floyd murder case

Derek Chauvin was convicted of all charges in the murder of George Floyd on Tuesday afternoon.

Chauvin, 45, was found guilty of unintentional second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. Sentencing will be in two months. The most serious charge carries up to 40 years in prison.

It was only 10 months ago that the WNBA, NBA, National Basketball Players Association, and others sports leagues and organizations used their brands to highlight social injustices on a higher level than ever before. Messages were placed on courts, jerseys, and have been echoed relentlessly in press conferences.

Tuesday’s ruling was seen by many as a major win for the justice system. Here are some of the reactions by leagues, players, coaches, and sports media members.

Washington Mystics guard and Delaware County native Natasha Cloud, Eagles safety Rodney McLeod, and North Philadelphia’s Dawn Staley, head women’s basketball coach at South Carolina, have been some of the more vocal locals in sports on social injustices. Cloud sat out last season to focus on the issues. McLeod has launched initiatives in the Philadelphia community, and Staley uses her voice on social media and in most South Carolina press conferences to speak on inequities.

Those three, along with North Philly native and Chicago Sky forward Kahleah Copper, were some of the local athletes pleased with the ruling.

Accountability was the word of the day Tuesday. Many people wanted to see that an officer of the law was not above the law. The result was just the second murder conviction ever of a Minnesota officer, and the first with a white officer killing a Black man.

This sparked responses across the sports world highlighting the accountability of an officer. Along with James, WNBA figures Kia Nurse and Renee Montgomery, ESPN’s Maria Taylor, and MLB’s Amir Garrett expressed themselves with that word.