Powerful moment from NBA player Meyers Leonard … who choked backed tears while addressing a group of Jewish kids at a temple in Florida, as he explained his regret for using an anti-Semitic slur back in March.
The 29-year-old took the mic at Boca Raton Synagogue over the weekend … and began by saying, “I owe everybody, truly, a sincere apology.”
As we previously reported, the former Miami Heat player was playing “Call of Duty” on March 9 when he hurled the K-word at an opposing player. The session was being live-streamed on Twitch at the time.
Twitch immediately blocked Leonard from the platform — and the NBA hit Meyers with a $50k fine and a 1-week suspension.
Leonard apologized and vowed to educate himself about why the slur is dangerous and offensive … and it’s pretty obvious he’s been putting in the work.
At least, according to Rabbi Efrem Goldberg … who spoke glowingly about Meyers at Sunday’s event — praising him as a good dude and a “great friend of the Jewish community.”
Rabbi Goldberg told the crowd, “Over the last 3 months, I’ve gotten to know Meyers off camera and off the court … I’ve gotten to know what’s in his heart and who he is.”
“Meyers has learned a lot about the Jewish community … meeting with Holocaust survivors and reading books about Jewish history.”
Leonard also opened up about life after the incident — saying, “I’ve had a lot of really good moments and some pretty dark emotional moments but I just like to say, again, I’m so, so thankful for the people in the Jewish community whether it’s a little kid, a teenager, a high schooler or a rabbi.”
“I’ve just been very educated, I’ve had so many events away from the public eye that have just uplifted not only myself, my wife and our immediate family but my friends. I just learned so much and I’m so thankful through a very dark moment. Sometimes people say God works in mysterious ways
