Ex-NBA star makes homophobic comment after getting tolerance award

Just two days after receiving an Israeli award for his efforts to promote tolerance and diversity, retired NBA star Amar’e Stoudemire, who currently plays for the Hapoel Jerusalem basketball team, said he would “shower across the street” if there was a gay player on his team.

Several local league basketball players responded to a Walla Sport informal survey examining players’ attitudes to having a gay teammate.

Most responded to the question posed just before the European Quarter Final where Hapoel Jerusalem was pitted against Gran Canaria by saying that having a homosexual sportsman on their side would not bother them at all.

Stoudemire’s response was different. “I’m going to shower across the street, make sure my change of clothes are around the corner,” he said, with a smile. “And I’m going to drive.… Take a different route to the gym.”

Asked if he was joking, Stoudemire said, “I mean, there’s always a truth within a joke.”

Five years ago, the star was slapped with a $50,000 fine for a homophobic comment he messaged to a fan via Twitter.

According to the New York Post, the fan had written to Stoudemire, “You better come back a lot stronger and quicker to make up for this past season, dead[butt].’’

Stoudemire’s alleged reply was: “F***K you. I don’t have to do anything Homo.’’

Stoudemire apologized to the fan in a subsequent direct message.

The Israeli Basketball League said in a statement that it regretted Stoudemire’s latest comments and was convinced that most league players “do not and will not have a problem” playing with a gay member on the team.

Stoudemire on Sunday was given the Martin Luther King Jr. Award, presented for the past 19 years and sponsored by the State of Israel, the Jewish National Fund and the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York.

At the Jerusalem award ceremony, Russell Robinson, CEO of the Jewish National Fund-USA, said, “Stoudemire has again set an example that sportsmanship supersedes nationality, ethnicity, or religious affiliation.”

Stoudemire, a member of the Black Hebrew community, also known as the Hebrew Israelites — African Americans who believe that they are descendants of the ancient Israelites — said in a video to his Instagram followers that the award honored “my courage to be an Israelite and also to be able to work and talk about equality to all nations.”

Together with his wife Alexis, the star runs the Amar’e and Alexis Stoudemire Foundation which “improves the lives of at-risk youth through educational opportunities,” according to the foundation’s website.

Last summer, he held his first basketball peace camp in Israel, recruiting other NBA players to promote peace through basketball for 150 campers from different cultural backgrounds.

He has also held several “In The Paint” events at the Israel Museum, helping youth at risk to express themselves creatively through basketball and painting.