The Miami Heat announced via a statement on Tuesday center Meyers Leonard will be away from the team indefinitely after he used an anti-Semitic slur on Twitch.
Leonard issued an apology Tuesday night where he said he “didn't know what the word meant at the time” but knows he was wrong to use it. The Miami Heat condemned the use of all hate speech shortly after.
What happens next for the Heat center?
Hoch and Crowder both agreed they would prefer Leonard uses this opportunity to learn, grow and broaden his understanding of why his choice of words was hurtful.
“I hope that people learn from it. I don’t feel that Meyers Leonard should never work again in his life … again, I don’t like hearing the word and whatever the Heat deems the appropriate action, that’s fine. It’s not my decision to make” said Hoch. “I just hope that people say ‘I wasn’t aware that that was so hurtful or I wasn’t aware that words can engender that kind of response.”
Hoch added, “I hope that we all learn from it and become more tolerant.”