MINNEAPOLIS – Sitting in front of a microphone deep inside Target Center on Monday night, Quinten Post chose his words carefully after the Warriors’ 108-83 loss. 

Post was not offering up his thoughts on scoring against Rudy Gobert or the team’s 19 turnovers. 

No, for the past four days, he and the team had taken up residence in Minneapolis, the epicenter of America’s war on immigration. 

Post and his teammates had watched tens of thousands of protesters march down the street in sub-zero temperatures in front of their downtown Minneapolis team hotel shortly after Golden State arrived on Friday afternoon. 

He was stuck in the hotel on Saturday when news broke that the game was postponed after federal immigration agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, and played in Sunday’s contest that was coated in a thick pall. 

As a Dutch citizen, he did not want to pretend to be an expert on American legal policy. 

But as a person, his feelings were clear after what he called “a crazy” few days in Minnesota. 

“I’m not educated enough on the subject to say something truly smart about it, but some of the things that I see, from a human standpoint, are unacceptable,” Post said. “It looks like a witch hunt out there.”

Warriors coach Steve Kerr spoke at length the day before about the prolonged occupation of Minneapolis by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, calling for less division and expressing support for the city during what he dubbed a “surreal” series of events. 

When given a chance to expand on his initial thoughts, Kerr did just that after Monday’s game. Like many Americans, he had read about 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos being detained by immigration personnel while at school. 

“It’s not like we’re rooting out violent criminals,” Kerr said. “They’re taking 5-year-old kindergartners and US citizens and detaining people. Immigration is a problem that needs to be addressed, but it needs to be addressed by Congress, legislatively, not by a military force in the streets pulling people from their homes.” 

Pretti’s death had rocked the Minneapolis community, and what multiple players and coaches described as the city’s “weight” hung over Sunday’s game. 

Multiple anti-ICE chants and iconography were encountered throughout the game, by both fans and at least two members of the in-venue entertainment team.

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – Organizers say the purpose of this weekend’s memorial ride is to mourn the death of Alex Pretti at the hands of U.S. Border Patrol agents and to celebrate his life.

‘An advocate for getting people to ride bicycles’

What we know:

Alex Pretti was an avid outdoorsman who loved mountain biking and was a customer at Angry Catfish Bicycle Shop in South Minneapolis.

Now the community Pretti rolled with in group rides around the Twin Cities is ready to roll for him.

“Alex is a cyclist, and if you’re a cyclist, you’re part of this community,” said Jerrod Alder, “director of stoke” at Angry Catfish.

‘In this together’

The backstory:

Angry Catfish is helping organize a 10-mile bike ride in Pretti’s honor this Saturday with stops at Pretti’s memorial at 26th and Lyndale and Renee Good’s memorial at 34th and Portland avenue, before ending with a moment of silence at the Minneapolis VA hospital where Pretti worked as an ICU nurse.

“I think someone that is that cheerful and loving and has touched so many people needs to be honored,” said Alder.

Organizers say the cycling community has many spokes, and similar memorial rides are being planned in more than a half dozen other cities around the country, including New York, Boston and Atlanta, with more possibly on the way, both to mourn Pretti and to show solidarity with his mission of getting ICE out of Minnesota.

“Folks have asked how many people do you anticipate showing up? And I think it’s between 50 and 1,000 people. Minnesota shows up no matter the weather,” said Alder.

‘A respectful human being’

What they’re saying:

Organizers say there’s no better way to mourn the loss of someone who was so caring than to do something he loved.

“Bicycles are magic. We think it’s important in this moment to share that magic with the world,” said Alder.

Dig deeper:

Organizers say the memorial ride for Alex Pretti will meet at Washburn Fair Oaks Park, across the street from the Minneapolis Institute Of Arts, at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 31.

The ride will begin at 1:30 p.m.