In the early 1900s, the Christian origins of basketball (in the YMCA) spawned an unwritten rule: playing the game was forbidden during Lent.
Basketball Sinners Repent! (It’s Lent)
Jackie Robinson was much better at basketball than at baseball, and may have been the finest hoops player of his time.
Like the phonograph, the blog is leading to a new Black Renaissance that is redefining who we think we are in music, fashion, literature, the arts, and of course, in sports.
The first Colored YWCA was formed in 1918 in Germantown, a diverse section of Philadelphia. The Germantown Hornets were its all-black female basketball team.
We’re planning these great posts for the near future: 1. A Life-Changing New Year’s Resolution Tool 2. Reviews Our own reviews of these two new books: Breaking Through: John B. McLendon, Basketball Legend and Civil Rights Pioneer Souled Out?: How Black Athletes Are Winning And Losing In Sports 3. Female Black Fives More in our… Read more »
Our list of the most deserving Black Fives Era players and contributors who are not yet enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame.
In 1930, a 6-ft. 7-in. black female basketball player was a rare sight. That is, everywhere but on the South Side of Chicago, where the Club Store Coeds, a.k.a. Chocolate Coeds played.
In 1948, the New York Rens made history by replacing the Detroit Vagabond Kings of the National Basketball League as the Dayton Rens. But, was it a raw deal?
They were pretty. They were magnificent. They were the Chicago Roamers, a.k.a. the Roamer Girls, a great African American womens basketball team you probably never heard of until now.
Halloween is the anniversary of Earl Lloyd becoming the first African American to play in an NBA game. He debuted on Oct. 31, 1950 with the Washington Capitols.
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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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#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