Udonis Haslem recently spoke out against spring breakers who defied the nation’s social distancing guidelines as his Miami Heat teammates gave their full support.
With the country’s leaders urging everyone to stay at home and practice social distancing when going out in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, Haslem voiced out his displeasure via The Players’ Tribune.
First-time All-Star Bam Adebayo and former All-Star Goran Dragic rallied behind the veteran forward on social media.
Haslem’s stern words were aimed specifically at the young man who contemptuously declared, “If I get corona, I get corona,” and his fellow spring breakers.
“This virus is going to affect everybody, especially the most vulnerable,” wrote Haslem. “So if you got a nice, stable environment? Keep your a– home. If you got a roof over your head? Keep your a– home. If you got a crib with Netflix and a refrigerator full of food? Keep your a– home.”
Haslem made sure to let these young people know that he’s not a professional in health care, but it didn’t mean he wasn’t qualified to speak up.
“I can’t tell you what’s going to happen with the coronavirus,” wrote Haslem. “I’m not a public health expert. But I am a certified O.G., and I’m definitely qualified to tell you about what’s going to happen in these streets with so much of the economy shut down. If people don’t take this situation seriously and pull together as a nation, millions of kids are going to suffer.”
Even as he concluded his piece, Haslem was in no mood to mince his words.
“This ain’t your f—— beach, bruh,” he wrote. “This is not your spring break. This s— is real life — and come to think of it, it’s more than even that. This s— is life and death.”
Haslem and his teammates should be quite pleased to learn that Brady Sluder, the 22-year-old who made the infamous comment, apologized on Instagram on Sunday.
“I would like to sincerely apologize for the insensitive comment I made in regards to COVID-19 while on spring break,” Sluder wrote. “I wasn’t aware of the severity of my actions and comments.”
As Sluder has come to his senses, Haslem can rest easy that his words did not fall on deaf ears.