Report: Dion Waiters to sit out National Anthem due to religious faith

Dion Waiters is one of the most interesting basketball players I can remember. He posts on social media, often about his ridiculously cute son. He is enigmatic and believes himself. On Wednesday night he found himself out of the Cleveland Cavaliers starting lineup after just three games. It could very well have been a result of Matthew Dellavedova being injured, but when Waiters didn't come out for pregame introductions or the National Anthem, there were concerns he might be disgruntled or hurt.

Well, he has given Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group the reason for his absence, and he says it won't stop anytime soon:

Waiters informed Northeast Ohio Media Group that he is a Muslim and that he plans to excuse himself prior to the national anthem from here on out.

"It's because of my religion," Waiters told NEOMG. "That's why I stayed in the locker room."

Waiters says he is rededicating himself more to his Muslim faith. He appears to be in a happier state.

Look, part of the great thing about freedom in this country is that you get to make decisions like this. If it's a part of his sincerely held religious faith and doesn't harm anyone, then I'm proud to live in this type of society and support Waiters. Tolerance for different beliefs and choices is part of what makes this country great. Dion puts on the Cavaliers jersey and for all we know is a model father, and hasn't gotten into any type of trouble. Just today Dave McMenamin said this about Waiters:

re: Dion RT @mcten: @donjuan914 I disagree with that. He's actually well liked by the team. Just a very confident guy with a bit of an edge.

— Nominataur (@Nominataur) November 8, 2014

This story is newsworthy, but I am going to close comments for this one. I do believe that it would be possible to have a constructive conversation about this, but I just don't know if this is the place.