Can an NBA team be too white?

[Deberg_1990]

http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/dish...lves-too-white



Are Minnesota Timberwolves Too White?


Minnesota Timberwolves fans may notice something different about their team this year. In a league in which American-born black players made up 75 percent of roster spots in 2011, the Timberwolves will have an opening-day roster comprising just 33 percent black players (five out of 15).

According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, this year's squad will be the league's whitest since the 1980s Boston Celtics.


Is that a problem?

Some civil rights leaders in Minneapolis think so. Tyrone Terrell, chairman of St. Paul's African American leadership council, told the Star-Tribune that he thinks the unbalanced roster could be seen as a ploy by the ownership to sell the team to a majority-white fan base.

"How did we get a roster that resembles the 1955 Lakers?" Terrell said to the Star-Tribune. "I think everything is a strategy. Nothing happens by happenstance."

Timberwolves president of basketball operations David Kahn called the allegations "patently false."

Indeed, while the team lacks as many African-American players as most other squads, the Timberwolves are still quite diverse. Five of their ten white players were born outside of the United States.

Brandon Roy, projected to be the team's only black starter, says the color of his teammates doesn't faze him.

"It's just basketball," Roy said. "I never really had to feel like I'm the only black guy out here. I've played on teams that maybe had all black guys and the feeling is just the same when I'm out there on the floor playing with these guys."

Ron Edwards, a longtime Minneapolis civil rights advocate, told the Star-Tribune that it was "somewhat disturbing" when he saw a game last season in which Wes Johnson was the only black player on the floor for the Timberwolves. The composition of this season's roster has prompted Edwards to react even stronger.

"It raises some real questions to me about what's really intended," Edwards said. "I think, personally, that it was calculated. Is this an attempt to get fans back in the stands? Minnesota, after all, is a pretty white state.''

Edwards added that the Timberwolves' roster decisions are a "nullification of diversity and a reversal of history."

Kahn said the Timberwolves targeted two black players as free agents during the summer. But Portland matched Minnesota's offer to Nicolas Batum, and Jordan Hill opted to re-sign with the Lakers at less money for a better chance to win a championship.

"What if Batum and Hill were here?" Kahn said.

[durtyrute]

Originally Posted by KILLER_CLOWN

810 is talking about this and Danny(dipshit) thinks there is racism involved here.

I like Danny and all, but sometimes he says some of the dumbest shit.

[blaise]

Originally Posted by durtyrute

I like Danny and all, but sometimes he says some of the dumbest shit.

I agree. Half the time it seems like he just likes going, "Ehhhh, I don't know....." in response to someone, but he doesn't have much else after that.
It's like that one commercial from Honda where the guy goes, "Ehhhh, I don't know about that...." but makes no actual point.

[durtyrute]

It's crazy, he makes Carrington, who I swear is a Nick Wright clone, sound like a genius.

[Mr. Laz]

Can an NBA team be too black?

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, this year's squad will be the league's whitest since the 1980s Boston Celtics.

We all know how bad those Celtics teams were.

[Saul Good]

Are the Calgary Flames too black? They have two black players.

[vailpass]

Negro please.

[Captain Obvious]

I'm surprised Whitlock hasn't posted in here yet.

[Calcountry]

Really? This is the N B A we are talking about.

[Fruit Ninja]

white folks can ball now days. There are some really really damned good ones.
If you can play, then play

[durtyrute]

Out of all of the jokes about black people and all of the racism geared towards black people it's funny to see some in here get upset about this.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by durtyrute

Out of all of the jokes about black people and all of the racism geared towards black people it's funny to see some in here get upset about this.

[SNR]

Originally Posted by durtyrute

Out of all of the jokes about black people and all of the racism geared towards black people it's funny to see some in here get upset about this.

I don't think anybody's really upset. We're content to call the original author an idiot and move on.

The Timberwolves are actually in a position to make the playoffs this year, largely because they have a center who can score, one of the most versatile PFs in the game, an super-talented passer at PG, and now they've done a good job to fill out the rest of their starting lineup with smart veterans who know how to play in the league. Yes, outside of Roy, they're all white guys. And no, it's not a problem because they can all ball hard.

[CoMoChief]

Originally Posted by Calcountry

Really? This is the N B A we are talking about.

I dont get the context of this...what does the N stand for?

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by Fruit Ninja

white folks can ball now days. There are some really really damned good ones.
If you can play, then play

I saw some article a couple of years ago that I thought was really interesting.

It mentioned the NBA as an example of cultural bias, and linked it to lower school test scores among minorities.

There are a fair number of white NBA players, but the vast majority are non-American. At the time of the article, I think it said there was only one white American in the league (or one white American starter, something like that). However, there were a fair number of foreign white people.

The article made the comment that white Americans are culturally infused with the notion that blacks are better at basketball, so they give up easily and don't have the persistence to succeed at an elite level, because they feel that they have an inherent disadvantage. White foreigners don't have the same issue, so they soldier on and do just fine.

The article then said something like, "Do you see the parallel between this and lower standardized test scores for blacks and Hispanics?"

I thought it was an interesting observation in how people internalize societal expectations.