Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter says he and teammate Tacko Fall were harassed by two men while leaving a mosque Friday.
Kanter tweeted a video of the incident, saying the men were supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Kanter has been an outspoken critic of Erdogan.
“There’s Turkish people attacking us. I told you, America, this is crazy, right?” Kanter said in the video.
Kanter showed the men, who were not speaking English, during the nearly three-minute video as one also took cellphone video of him.
Hello Everyone!#DictatorErdogan @RTErdogan thugs attacked and threatened me today after Friday prayer in Boston at a mosque
Turkish Government don’t even let me practice my religion freely in America let alone my freedom of speech is under attack@FBI@FBIBoston@bostonpolice pic.twitter.com/FH2Ixe6QcY
— Enes Kanter (@EnesKanter) October 4, 2019
Kanter later told The Boston Globe that the men cursed at him and called him “traitor.”
“I shouldn’t be feeling uncomfortable or insecure while critiquing anyone, but unfortunately even in America they make me feel this insecurity – can you even imagine how people in Turkey feel?” Kanter said in a statement texted to the Globe.
The newspaper said requests for comment by the Celtics were not returned Friday. A police spokesman said they were aware of the incident but that no formal report had been made.
Turkish prosecutors have previously sought an international arrest warrant for Kanter, citing his ties to exiled Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is blamed for a failed coup in 2016.
Kanter did not travel for games outside the United States last season over safety concerns. However, measures were being taken to ensure Kanter, who finished last season with Western Conference finalist Portland, could have traveled to Toronto had the Trail Blazers made the NBA Finals.