Basketball is more accessible around the world than it is here in Seattle and other American cities. What does that mean for the African-American Community locally as well as nationally?
The popularity Seattle receives on the national stage for basketball is fantastic. Still, it is causing the game to be more exclusive and monetized at the youth level. Add that to the fact that city recreational teams are no longer around and lack of gym availability is the norm. In addition, tournament fees, travel expenses, and specialized training are barriers for some youth and their families. As a result, children are being pushed out of the sport before they even can compete or grow.
It is starting to remind me of baseball. In the 1970s, Black baseball players made up about 20% of MLB. Today, that number has dropped to nearly 8%. African American players disappeared as youth baseball became more monetized and exclusive. There are Black players in baseball, but most were born in Latin America. Afro-Latino players are not the problem.
Current trends in the NBA could indicate that African-Americans need to start looking at other avenues for children to excel outside of sports, which should probably be the case now anyway. It may be nothing, but if we look at what is going on in the NBA, it, at the least, requires some attention.
The top 3 players this year are international. Two are our brothers, one Nigerian and the other from Cameroon. All three play positions and have styles of play that are not as admired or emphasized here in the states at a young age. African Americans may be specializing our way out of jobs in the NBA and, at the same time, possibly creating a middle class for basketball players.
It doesn’t sound bad when you think about that, but the competition pool is growing, which means the already nearly impossible odds are getting even tighter. The last thing you would think we wanted was limiting the amount of youth that can play a sport.
I am not just talking about highly competitive basketball. I am also talking about the children that want to shoot in a gym and find out if they are interested in the game. Yes, we know children in this society do not play outside anywhere near as much as my generation did, but that doesn’t explain the lack of accessibility.
This isn’t a xenophobic rant about international players taking over the league. Instead, I am saying that we need to pay attention to the sentiment of owners like Mark Cuban and understand the connection to what is going on in our communities with basketball. His comments were deemed racist by some, who are more worried about debating whether he is wrong or not about US-born players.
Still, no one addressed that he is saying you don’t have to look in the United States for players anymore. Of course, most players are still African-American, but who knows what that will look like in another 50 years. Look at draft picks over the last 20 years, search where the NBA invests in scouting, and follow the money.
Think about the industries Black people were prevalent in at one point, and remember what happened when those jobs started being outsourced overseas.
We have to adapt.
A STEM and Basketball Academy would be excellent, or an academy partly funded by the proceeds from their basketball team. Business school and Basketball Academy.
We have to make basketball more accessible again. If that means buying property and building gyms where we can provide youth access, let’s pool our funds together. Let’s do it if it means writing our local politicians and demanding access to our local community centers, not only opening the doors but also designating time and opportunities.
Let’s make basketball accessible again! Taking it a step further, “Lets use Basketball to gain ACCESS,” as my friend and Founder of Access Dre James says!
Thoughts Processed 