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.
11 Major Black-White Basketball Collaborations Prior to NBA
We’re featured in Jay-Z’s Life+Times Magazine! The publication’s Quinn Peterson wrote this long-read article on the Black Fives Exhibition at the New-York Historical Society!
Michael C. King, the son of William “Dolly” King, describes some family artifacts and the stories surrounding them.
One is a media pass to a history-making event. The other was an “errant” pass that may have changed history.
If a community initiative passes final City Council approval, New York City will rename a Bronx street after former Harlem Rens star John Isaacs.
Zack Clayton, one of the greatest basketball players of the Black Fives Era as a star for the New York Renaissance and other teams, was born on May 4, 1910 in Philadelphia.
Today is the anniversary (1939) of the all-black New York Renaissance (a.k.a. “Harlem Rens”) winning the first World Championship of Pro Basketball.
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced Friday a new Early African-American Pioneers of the Game Committee, which has the clout to induct with a direct vote.
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.
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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