I was invited to be a panelist at the 2nd Annual Princeton University Sports Symposium last week (Friday, December 7). (Download agenda.) Terry Lefton (left), editor of the Sports Business Journal, moderating a panel discussion about Sports Marketing and Sponsorship. I wore my orange and black Jordan sweater vest and my black/orange Black Fives Nike… Read more »
Princeton University Sports Symposium
James “Big Jim” Dorsey, a tall 15-year-old African American janitor from the North Side section of Pittsburgh, single-handedly influenced black basketball in the early 1900s.
A video clip and some pics from the House of Hoops grand opening in Harlem
I’ll be at the grand opening of “House of Hoops” today, a new basketball-only store on 125th Street in Harlem. The store is a collaboration between Nike and Footlocker, which Nike says will be a “hub for all things basketball.” I like the idea for more than one reason. When I lived in Harlem in… Read more »
William ‘Dolly’ King excelled in football, basketball, and baseball at Long Island University before starring in basketball with the Rens and other pro teams.
In 1922 the white-owned all-black Commonwealth Big Five basketball team made its debut in Harlem. The “Commons” were the first fully professional African American basketball team.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HTHmv1xSuQ If this is your first time seeing Black Fives and you wonder what it’s all about, then this short video clip might help. It’s a brief introduction that I pulled it off the shelf — about 30 seconds — with team photos, media coverage, celebrity shots, and product highlights flying by real fast. It’s… Read more »
Bill Rhoden’s latest column will likely make you disappointed in David Stern and his N.B.A., or the Rev. Calvin Butts III and his Abyssinian Development Corporation (ADC).
Recently, Converse and Black Fives staged a vintage basketball cage game re-enactment — a game between the New York (Harlem) Rens and the Washington (DC) 12 Streeters played inside a wire mesh cage. These are some of the highlights presented in a slide show: httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILCKoSmOCkQ The game was played according to vintage Black Fives Era… Read more »
Robert “Bob” Douglas was by far the most successful basketball team owner of the Black Fives Era.
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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.![]()
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Make History Now.![]()
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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