Lakers star LeBron James said it “makes no sense” that nothing changes when it comes to gun control in the United States in the wake of Wednesday’s mass shooting on the UNLV campus that left at least three dead. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS — As the Lakers and the NBA descended upon T-Mobile Arena for the final four of the league’s inaugural In-Season Tournament, the host city was mourning after a tragic mass shooting that left at least three dead on the UNLV campus – just a few miles away from where the tournament will wrap up.
Lakers star LeBron James, who has been a vocal advocate for gun control and reform for years, offered his condolences to the families and friends who lost their loved ones while also criticizing gun policies in the U.S. in the wake of the shooting.
“It just goes back to what I said before about guns in America,” James said during his Wednesday afternoon media availability at the arena ahead of the Lakers’ semifinal matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night.
James added: “It’s such a longer conversation, but we keep dealing with the same story, this same conversation every single time it happens, and it just continues to happen. The ability to get a gun, the ability to do these things over and over and over, and there’s been no change is literally ridiculous.”
The Lakers had yet to leave Los Angeles for Las Vegas when reports of shots fired at about 11:45 a.m. sent police swarming onto UNLV’s campus while students and professors barricaded themselves inside classrooms and dorm rooms.
UNLV police chief Adam Garcia said the gunman went to several floors before he was killed in a shootout with two university detectives outside the building. Authorities gave the all-clear about 40 minutes after the first report of an active shooter.
In addition to fatally shooting three people, the gunman also wounded another person. Wednesday’s shooting took place only a few miles from the Strip and the site of the Oct. 1, 2017 mass shooting that killed 60 country music fans and wounded hundreds more.
“It makes no sense that we continue to lose innocent lives, on campuses, schools, at shopping markets and movie theaters and all [types] of stuff,” James said. “It’s ridiculous. The fact that we haven’t changed anything – it’s actually been easier to be able to own a firearm. It’s stupid.”
The NBA released a statement about the shooting.
“The NBA family is heartbroken by today’s senseless shooting at UNLV,” the statement read. “We extend our sincerest condolences to the families and friends of the victims, as well as the entire Las Vegas community.”
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Originally published at Khobi Price