Commentary: Proposed All-White Georgia-based hoops league will not score points
Hab Richardson
Issue date: 1/26/10 Section: Sports
Don "Moose" Lewis is of the belief that in order for basketball fans to get back to enjoying the fundamentals of real basketball, he needs to start an all white basketball team.
Lewis hopes to bring the play of the All-American Basketball Alliance to several southern cities including Augusta.
As expected, this idea has been met with stinging criticism. He released a statement in the Jan. 19 issue of the Augusta Chronicle that said "only players that are natural born United States citizens with both parents of Caucasian race are eligible to play in the league."
Naturally, the claims of racism have bombarded Mr. Lewis and his AABA but he claims that since professional white basketball players are seriously in the minority, there's nothing racist about his plan.
If Mr. Lewis can be accused of being anything else other than a racist, it would be being a short-sighted and somewhat uninformed. His problems are not with basketball players of a certain color, it is with the culture that surrounds the game and informs everything from the way the players dress and their actions on and off the court.
As far as being short-sighted goes, he probably does not watch much professional basketball, because if he did, he would see that the game itself has a more international style and flavor. For example the Dallas Mavericks' Dirk Nowitzki, who was born in Germany, is a perennial NBA All-Star with a career scoring average of 22.9 points per game. Nowitzki was the League's Most Valuable Player in 2007 and lead his team to the NBA Finals of the 2006 season.
Canadian-born Steve Nash, who plays for the Phoenix Suns, is another foreign-born player who has had a great impact on the game. Nash is a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player, perennial All-Star, and is amongst the league leaders in assists every year. There should be little question about the soundness of their fundamentals. The argument of their athleticism however is another question. Although Nowitzki is a great shooter and rebounder for his 7 foot frame, it is not likely that you will see him in the Top Ten Countdown on Sportscenter for a reverse tomahawk slam dunk.
Lewis hopes to bring the play of the All-American Basketball Alliance to several southern cities including Augusta.
As expected, this idea has been met with stinging criticism. He released a statement in the Jan. 19 issue of the Augusta Chronicle that said "only players that are natural born United States citizens with both parents of Caucasian race are eligible to play in the league."
Naturally, the claims of racism have bombarded Mr. Lewis and his AABA but he claims that since professional white basketball players are seriously in the minority, there's nothing racist about his plan.
If Mr. Lewis can be accused of being anything else other than a racist, it would be being a short-sighted and somewhat uninformed. His problems are not with basketball players of a certain color, it is with the culture that surrounds the game and informs everything from the way the players dress and their actions on and off the court.
As far as being short-sighted goes, he probably does not watch much professional basketball, because if he did, he would see that the game itself has a more international style and flavor. For example the Dallas Mavericks' Dirk Nowitzki, who was born in Germany, is a perennial NBA All-Star with a career scoring average of 22.9 points per game. Nowitzki was the League's Most Valuable Player in 2007 and lead his team to the NBA Finals of the 2006 season.
Canadian-born Steve Nash, who plays for the Phoenix Suns, is another foreign-born player who has had a great impact on the game. Nash is a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player, perennial All-Star, and is amongst the league leaders in assists every year. There should be little question about the soundness of their fundamentals. The argument of their athleticism however is another question. Although Nowitzki is a great shooter and rebounder for his 7 foot frame, it is not likely that you will see him in the Top Ten Countdown on Sportscenter for a reverse tomahawk slam dunk.