Though news coverage of the NBA’s upcoming racial integration was limited, there was enough to get a glimpse of what the milestone meant at the time.
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Old Pittsburgh I was in Pittsburgh last week and whenever I visit there, I always stop in Homestead to look around Cumberland Posey’s (and Andrew Carnegie’s) old stomping grounds. And I also visit the Hill District to look around that place, once a major Black Fives Era basketball hotbed. (It was great to see a… Read more »
On October 13, 1910, history was made when Major A. Hart formed the first all-black play-for-pay basketball team, a new squad called the New York All Stars.
Judging from what I saw at the 16th Annual John Henry “Pop” Lloyd Humanitarian and Youth Awards in Atlantic City last weekend, this event just keeps getting better.
When SLAM asked me to write something about 93-year-old former professional basketball player John Isaacs, I wanted to go beyond what’s been told (and retold) before. I wanted to tell what matters most.
Happy birthday to John Isaacs, former New York Rens basketball star, born September 30, 1915.
A reminder that the NYC Basketball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Dinner will take place on Wednesday night at the New York Athletic Club.
The Basketball Hall of Fame will form a special review committee to look at overlooked African American candidates, but there’s a catch.
Adrian Dantley finally got elected into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He’ll be enshrined on Friday in a ceremony in Springfield, Massachusetts, along with several other players, coaches, and contributors including Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing, and Pat Riley. Among other things, I like Dantley’s unselfishness and perspective when it comes to recognizing his… Read more »
Here are some September birthdays of Black Fives Era stars.
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Black Fives
We inspire excellence in youth and communities by preserving, teaching, and honoring the pre-NBA history of African Americans in basketball.
For years, we have been building something truly remarkable.![]()
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Something deeper than what’s visible on the surface.![]()
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This piece, created by the Gee’s Bend Quilters Collective from remnants of our Black Fives throwback jerseys, carries that idea.![]()
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On the front, you see something beautiful.![]()
On the back, you see the work.![]()
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Tens of thousands of stitches.![]()
Each one holding the whole together.![]()
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Like the earlier African American basketball pioneers whose names were forgotten, but whose work helped shape the game.![]()
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Like the countless people, often unseen, who did and are doing the work that holds our country together.![]()
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The surface only exists because of what’s behind it.![]()
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And it’s only as strong as the weakest stitch.![]()
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Do we really want to remove certain stitches?![]()
Are we OK with pieces falling apart?![]()
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Do we value the work we don’t see?![]()
Do we recognize it?![]()
Do we protect it?![]()
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That’s the real story.![]()
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A cultural archive. A sports heritage platform.![]()
Build with us.![]()
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Make History Now.![]()
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#culturalheritage ![]()
#intellectualproperty ![]()
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#sportsbusiness ![]()
#blackhistory
For years, we have been building something truly remarkable.![]()
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A deep archive of early African American basketball.![]()
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The stories, the images, the history that shaped the game.![]()
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But this is more than an archive.![]()
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It’s a cultural IP and sports heritage platform.![]()
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Infrastructure of history, identity, and assets ready to build with.![]()
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For partners, institutions, and brands who want real cultural authenticity, not just performative optics.![]()
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Build with us.![]()
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blackfives.org/build![]()
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#blackhistory #culturalheritage #brandpartnerships #archives #intellectualproperty