In the headlines of the Sports Business Journal (SBJ) yesterday was this piece about how sluggish the U.S. athletic footwear industry is right now: Nike bucks trend of ‘uninspired’ U.S. market Here’s a quote from the article: “Nike still captures the high ground as far as authenticity and brand integrity,” said Claude Johnson, a former… Read more »
My Favorite Black Fives Retros For Spring, All $100 Or Less
Beside their football team popularized by Jim Thorpe, the Carlisle Indian School of the 1910s also had a talented Native American basketball team.
I forgot to mention these important birthdays of famous and in some cases forgotten pioneering African American basketball stars: George Crowe. March 22, 1921: George Crowe, a native of Whiteland, Indiana, is a member of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame. Crowe played for the New York Rens, the Los Angeles Red Devils (alongside Jackie… Read more »
Today we celebrate Paul Robeson’s birthday. Robeson was born on April 9, 1898 in Princeton, New Jersey.
If you hate the N.B.A.’s dress code on shorts, at least consider that you didn’t have to wear these.
When 93-year-old James Henderson ran into soon-to-be 93-year-old John Isaacs last Friday in Falls Church, Virginia, the trash talking began instantly.
William “Dolly” King, the 6-foot 4-inch, 220-lb. star center and captain of the undefeated LIU Blackbirds, left his team mid-season to join the all-black New York Rens.
Today in 1924, the first game between two fully-professional African American basketball teams was played, at the Renaissance Casino in Harlem.
Big name covers from way back include Ray Charles, Leontyne Price, Kim Weston (my favorite), and Melba Moore … but what about Alicia Keys, Jill Scott, Fantasia, Ciara, or Rihanna?
On February 22, 1922, the St. Christopher Club defeated visiting Morehouse College, 31-25, snapping the Southern Conference champions’ 42-game winning streak.
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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 ![]()
#archives ![]()
#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