Fundamentals of Interactive Journalism

Dick Barnett had snapped his Achilles tendon and was lying on the operating table when he realized he couldn’t call for a substitution. He’d won three national championships at Tennessee State University and was one of the first black players drafted into the NBA. But he’s focused solely on sports in college and had left in 1959 with a “D” average and no diploma. He had no alternatives to his pro basketball career.

“Suddenly I woke up and I understood that education meant something beyond just playing basketball,” said Barnett to an audience gathered at the CUNY Graduate Center for the first event in a series on “Civil Rights in the 60s.”

After a successful operation, he began taking courses to finish his B.A. and eventually earned a Ph.D. from Fordham University’s School of Education–with a 3.9 GPA.

Barnet, a Knicks all-star, was one of four legendary players who recently told about their experiences as some of the first blacks in the NBA. The others were Earl “The Pearl” Monroe, flamboyant New York Knicks-Baltimore Bullets start who recently produced the documentary “Black Magic”; Boston Celtics great “Mr. Clutch” Sam Jones, who was named One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History; and Thomas “Satch” Sanders, who was named to the Hall of Fame for his 13 years with the Celtics and then received the Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement Award. Together, these four accumulated 22 world championships.

But they were fouled off the court. They faced racial quotas from general managers, slurs hurled by fans and were often refused service in restaurants. “It didn’t matter that you were a so-called celebrity, you had to deal with that just like other blacks,” said Sanders. In 1961, the Celtics were in Lexington, Ky. and went to a cafeteria for something to eat before a game. When the cafeteria workers refused to serve Sanders and other black teammates, they decided not to play. Honoring their decision, their legendary coach Red Auerbach found them a ride to the airport, even as the game played on.

Among the audience at the Graduate Center was Bernard Tomlin, the head men’s basketball coach at SUNY Old Westbury, who had brought 14 of his players to learn from the NBA legends. “The most valuable part was the education component,” said Tomlin, who wants his players to find a better balance between academics and sports.

“That’s our ongoing mission,” he said.

By Maya J. Pope-Chappell

Prior to 1997, the Brownsville Recreation Center was plagued by violence. However, after the arrival of Greg “Jocko” Jackson, former NBA player and Brownsville, Brooklyn native, the rec center became a safe haven in the community.

photo courtesy of Steve Boyle/RISE, taken from brandonjennings.net

The question must be asked: does Brandon Jennings understand what he may have done?

Jennings should be in Tucson right now, sweating his way through captain’s practices with his new teammates as a freshman on Arizona’s hoop squad. Instead, he is in Italy, sweating his way through training camp with his new teammates as a rookie on Lottomatica Virtus Roma, a top Euroleague team.

The difference (other than the continents): about $1.2 million dollars plus endorsements.

He should be thanking David Stern for every penny of it.

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