Spike Lee has never minced words about social issues, but he apparently felt the need to respond to critics who loathed the message conveyed by his fit for last weekend’s NBA All-Star Game in Los Angeles.

Lee took to his verified Instagram page on Tuesday to refute the idea that his gear, which featured a Palestinian flag, somehow targeted one of the players on the court. Deni Avdija, a Portland Trail Blazers forward, became the first Israel-born player to play in an All-Star Game, putting up a five-point, four-assist, one-rebound effort in 15 minutes. 

Lee’s post read in part, “There Has Been Some Conjecture About What I Wore To The Games on Saturday and Sunday. The Clothes I Wore are Symbols of My Concern For The Palestinian Children and Civilians, And My Utmost Belief In Human Dignity For All Humankind. What I Wore Was Not Intended As A Gesture Of Hostility To Jewish People Or To Support Violence Against Anyone, Nor Was It Intended As A Comment On The Significance Of Deni Being An All-Star.”

While Avdija was on the court, Lee, an avid NBA fan, sat courtside as he often does at the All-Star Game and New York Knicks home games. He wore a black-and-white sweater that featured the black, white, green, and red flag. He also carried a bag slung over his shoulder with a strap patterned after the symbol. Avdija has not spoken publicly about what Lee wore, and he wore an Israeli flag on his jersey. None of that stopped Lee’s critics from serving outrage, with one prominent sports commentator arguing that Lee should be banned from NBA games for wearing the flag at a game the NBA designed to draw interest from international fans.

Avdija served in the Israeli Defense Forces before being drafted into the NBA in 2020, but has not been an active part of the Israeli military during the war between his native country and Hamas, the militant group that controls the Palestinian enclave of Gaza. The most recent round of hostilities was sparked when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 Israelis and taking another 250 hostage. The IDF has since laid siege to Gaza, killing more than 70,000 people. It has been accused by human rights organizations and at the United Nations and the International Criminal Court of committing a genocide.