Wilmeth Sidat-Singh, a former star athlete at Syracuse, spectacular pro hoops player with the New York Rens and Washington Bears, and former Tuskegee Airman, died in a plane crash while on an Army training mission in 1941.
More On Forgotten Black Fives Era Phenom Sidat-Singh
One unsung black sports pioneer stands out among dozens who paved the way during the Black Fives Era, and that’s a remarkable brother named Hunter Johnson.
The thing about free throws is you better make ’em … so here are a couple of points: Wilmeth Sidat-Singh. From the looks of it, I’ll be writing a regular Black Fives article for Bounce Magazine starting with their July 2008 issue. They have issues in March, June, July, September, November. It’ll be a real… Read more »
Next week is the 36th annual Black Invitational Basketball Tournament in Halifax, Nova Scotia, starting May 14. By far, this is the most amazing basketball tournament you’ve ever never heard of. Yet. It’s run by the Provincial Black Basketball Association — the most amazing basketball organization you’ve never heard of … yet. How do I… Read more »
A brief shout out to the Stentonworth Athletic Club of 1911, one of the first African American basketball teams in Philadelphia. The team featured Frank Forbes, a graduate of Southern Manual Training High School (which became South Philadelphia High School in 1915) where he was a dominating all-around athlete. “Of the school and club men,… Read more »
A ticket stub from a historically important 1937 game between the New York Rens and the Oshkosh All Stars.
Beside their football team popularized by Jim Thorpe, the Carlisle Indian School of the 1910s also had a talented Native American basketball team.
So you think you want more burn? In the early days of basketball, that meant literally more burn! Games were played in cages. Mostly to protect the players from the spectators. But not from each other. And not from the pot belly stoves on all 4 sides of the court. Or the cigars of opposing… Read more »
News of the Black Fives Collection by Converse continues to spread, partly through the help of a syndicated story that first ran in the Washington Post. Kudos to the Converse media relations team. Here are some more recent press clippings. The New Jersey Star-Ledger: … “Included will be shoes inspired by the high-top Chuck Taylor… Read more »
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 »
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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