We recently acquired this very rare original photograph of Long Island University‘s epic 1939-40 basketball team. A remarkable artifact, it is autographed by all but one of the players on the Blackbirds squad that season, as well as by head coach Clair Bee. And it includes trailblazing African American basketball star William “Dolly” King, known… Read more »
Long Island University’s Epic 1939-40 Basketball Team (Autographed)
In its first enshrinement class, the newly created Franklin (Indiana) High School Alumni Hall of Fame will induct basketball pioneer George Crowe tomorrow.
In addition to being banned for life, Donald Sterling also should be forced to visit the Black Fives exhibition now at the New-York Historical Society, which reveals that blacks and whites have been working together in basketball for a very, very long time.
George Crowe, the last surviving member of the New York Rens all-black pro basketball team, would have been 90 years old today. He died earlier this year.
Sacramento Bee: George Crowe, an elite athlete who broke racial barriers in basketball and baseball, died quietly in Rancho Cordova last week after living a remarkable life as a mid-20th century pioneer.
Henry “Hank” DeZonie, who was a star basketball player with the Harlem Yankees, New York Renaissance, Dayton Rens of the National Basketball League, and Tri-Cities Blackhawks of the National Basketball Association, died January 2, 2009, at Lenox Hill Hospital in Harlem. He would have been 87 years old yesterday.
Isaacs was born Sept. 15, 1915. After retiring from serious competition, he coached Tiny Archibald, Chris Mullin and a thousand others. Later, he became a counselor at the Madison Square Boys and Girls Club in The Bronx. He died Monday after a stroke. He was 93.
Today is the date that the all-black New York (Harlem) Rens made history by replacing the Detroit Vagabond Kings of the previously racially segregated National Basketball League and debuting as the new Dayton Rens.
I sat down with MSG Network for an interview in their documentary about the close relationship between NBA pioneers Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton and Joe Lapchick.
Jackie Robinson was much better at basketball than at baseball, and may have been the finest hoops player of his time.
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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 ![]()
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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