It has been a delicate summer for the NBA — and professional sports as a whole — that is now becoming even more so.
The NBA is in the spotlight again for another issue surrounding race and Atlanta Hawks owner, Bruce Levenson, and GM, Danny Ferry, are at the center of it.
If the statements that Levenson and Ferry made — independent of each other — are proven to have racial intent, this could be another disaster for the NBA that is just clearing the smoke from the forest fire former Clippers owner Donald Sterling caused earlier this summer.
So why has NBA commissioner Adam Silver and the league not taken swift and decisive action?
Well, let’s just say that the intent is not yet clear and Levenson (and Ferry) have a few more supporters than Sterling did. The forever outspoken Jason Whitlock of ESPN is one of them. Here’s more:
Let’s start here: Based on his controversial, allegedly racially insensitive internal email, Atlanta Hawks co-owner Bruce Levenson has far more in common with the writer of this column than disgraced Clippers owner Donald Sterling.
Maybe Levenson has some documented, Sterling-like history of racial discrimination that has yet to be revealed. Maybe Levenson swiftly fell on the racial-guilt sword and offered to sell the team because he knows his life history won’t survive a hypothetical external investigation led by the media and racial opportunists.
Or maybe — and this is what I believe — Levenson is a victim of toxic, internal-ownership dysfunction within the Hawks organization. And maybe the NBA is about to lose a good owner and a good man, one who had the courage to speak out publicly for the removal of Sterling,because few people have the courage to objectively and transparently judge his 2012 email.
As Whitlock dives into, what is clear is that Levenson was speaking in business terms in his emails, which may save him in the end.
NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar wrote a terrific piece for Time that defended Levenson. I’d like to add my voice. Levenson’s email sounded very much like conversations I led with my radio staff in Kansas City years ago when I was trying to make my show more inclusive of white listeners and callers. As the lone black host at two different all-sports stations, black callers and listeners dominated my show. Black advertisers did not. The show was financially supported primarily by white businesses, and the largest demographic for listener growth was white males.
We had the task of maintaining a show that remained relevant with black listeners while being inclusive of white people. At my direction, we made a concerted effort to cultivate white males as regular callers to the show. When it came to on-air contests, radio remotes and special events, we made a special effort to be inclusive of white men. As someone who has an affinity and passion for discussing racial and cultural issues, I made it a point to only discuss those issues when they really mattered and not turn the shows into Malcolm X Unplugged. The music we played going in and out of commercial breaks was closely monitored and was intentionally peppered with the rock music I enjoy (a lot of Bon Jovi). We made it a point to use the contacts/sources I established as a newspaper sports columnist to invite a diverse group of expert guests.
My point: The show was black and highly inclusive and accessible for all people. We wanted to be the Oprah Winfrey of sports talk.
This is one of the many uncomfortable realities of running a business — a major one at that — in the year 2014:
Business is global.
The NBA is global.
All different races consume it on a daily basis. And in order to maximize profits, teams, leagues and owners need to maximize viewership and consumption. And when one group — white, black, yellow, purple, young, old, Jewish, Hispanic, you name it — is not consuming it at a profitable rate, it’s in the best interest of that entity to do what it can to fix it, or, maximize what they are able to.
Levenson’s email paints him as a man trying to be inclusive while trying to expand his business. In an effort to increase fan support, the Atlanta Braves will be moving to Cobb County, Georgia, the suburbs, in 2016, abandoning Turner Field and downtown Atlanta. It’s called “white flight.” Levenson was trying to avoid white flight.
I guarantee you the next owner of the Hawks — regardless of race — won’t care. He’ll overpay for the privilege of owning the team, and he’ll look to maximize profits by any means necessary. If that means moving to the suburbs at the first possible opportunity, he will do just that. I bet the kiss cam, cheerleaders, season-ticket base and everything else will look much whiter in an Atlanta suburb.
And then the new owner of the Atlanta Hawks will write an email complaining that the cheerleaders, kiss cam, music and season-ticket base are too white, and the media and racial opportunists will applaud the new owner for being a champion of diversity.
It will be interesting to see how the NBA handles this matter with the Hawks, and all of the internal dysfunction that they have proven to carry.
More from around the NBA
- Raptors center Jonas Valanciunus is showing big things for Lithuania: For Lithuania, Valanciunas has to do just about everything: Set screens and picks, roll to the hoop, back down defenders, crash the boards, block shots and live up to the hype that began when he was named FIBA’s young player of the year in 2011 and 2012. He also has to lead a team in scoring without their usual go-to guy, former Raptor Linus Kleiza, and injured point guard and captain Mantas Kalnietis. “Expectations are quite big because he has lots of fans in Lithuania,” says Augustis Mindaugas, a Delfi news site basketball writer who watched him lead Lithuania to junior titles in 2010 and 2011. “Now everybody’s expecting he’ll be the main power for Lithuania. He’s making the transition from youth to leadership of the national team. Now he’s somewhere in the middle.” Valanciunas had 22 points, 13 rebounds (five offensive), three blocked shots and a flurry of eight key fourth-quarter points in Lithuania’s round-of-16 victory over a scrappy New Zealand Tall Blacks team 76-71 Sunday at the Palau San Jordi Olympic venue in Barcelona. “I was just playing my game,” Valanciunas, 22, told the Star afterwards. “It’s just basketball, trying to play hard. Fight for the ball. Just do what I need to do.””
- Greg Monroe has officially signed a qualifying offer with the Detroit Pistons: ““I have said from day one that we have great respect for Greg
as a person and like what he brings to this team as a player,” said Stan Van Gundy, Head Coach and President of Basketball Operations for the Detroit Pistons. “We have had good dialogue with Greg throughout the offseason with the understanding that there were multiple options for both parties involved, and we respect his decision. We look forward to a great year from Greg as we continue to build our team moving forward.” “I look forward to playing for Coach Van Gundy and his staff,” said Monroe. He has a proven track record and I’m excited about working with my teammates to get better and prepare for the season.” Monroe, the seventh overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, averaged 15.2 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.1 steals and 32.8 minutes in a career-high 82 games (all starts) last season. In 309 career games (277 starts), Monroe has averaged 14.0 points (.508 FG, .678 FT), 9.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.2 steals in 31.3 minutes per game.”
- The Cleveland Cavaliers have officially signed Shawn Marion: “”Shawn brings great versatility, talent and championship experience to the team,” General Manager David Griffin said in a press release announcing the deal. “He will impact both ends of the floor, and his ability to guard multiple positions will be particularly important for us. Shawn is an accomplished, high-caliber veteran that will help with leadership on and off the court and we’re very happy to welcome him to the Cavaliers family.” Marion, a 15-year veteran, started his career in Phoenix, where he developed a relationship with Griffin. “I’m excited to be a Cavalier,” Marion said. “I can see the hunger and mentality of everyone in the organization and l look forward to being a part of it. The goal is to win a championship and that’s what I want.” The 6-foot-11, Gretna, LA native has averaged 15.0-plus points, 9.0-plus rebounds, 2.0-plus assists and 1.0-plus steals in each of his last three seasons.”
Ben Baroff is a basketball journalist who blogs for SheridanHoops.com. Follow him on Twitter here.
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