Nothin’ but Net: Taking a stand isn’t wrong

Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) – The line professional athletes have to walk in terms of speaking out on social issues is a murky one.

The older generation believes athletes have no business sharing opinions on gay marriage, the civil rights movement or politics in general. It’s a valid argument for professional sports men and women are in the frontal lob for their abilities, not their stances.

Michael Jordan is the first name that pops to mind on the subject of declining involvement in a worldly issue. In 1990, at the zenith of his fame, Jordan was asked by Harvey Gantt, an African-American Democrat, for an endorsement in his bid to unseat Jesse Helms in the US Senate.

Helms was no friend to the black community, but Jordan passed. Jordan reportedly told a friend, “Republicans buy sneakers too.” Jordan didn’t want to alienate a potential consumer at the expense of his political beliefs.

Forget, for the moment, that Helms was by almost every account, a racist, Jordan still wouldn’t go out on that limb to rebuke him.

Tiger Woods rarely speaks on social issues. He was the only African-American player on the PGA Tour, but almost always neglected to voice opinions on any issue.

For Woods, the endorsement portion could’ve been the root for silence, but that was a shame, too. Golf is whiter than a snowman ghost, so a different perspective was always appreciated, although never materialized.

Fast-forward just a few years and today’s stars of the NBA have no reservations about speaking out. That’s a pretty big blanket, but leading the charge is LeBron James.

On Monday, James and several members of both the Cleveland Cavaliers and Brooklyn Nets wore “I Can’t Breathe” T-shirts during pregame warm-ups. Derrick Rose was the trailblazer for the cause, doing it Saturday night.

The shirt is a reference to the death of Eric Garner and the subsequent lack of an indictment for the officer who killed him.

James is very aware of his position, not just within league circles, but in this world. When Donald Sterling declared he didn’t want black people at his games, James was among the first to say, “he’s got to go.”

And what happened on Monday wasn’t as much a political statement, well, at least according to James.

“I’ve been quoted over and over about what’s going on as far as it’s more of a notion to the family, more than anything,” explained James. “Obviously, as a society we have to do better. We have to be better for one another. It doesn’t matter what race you are. It’s more of a shout out to the family more than anything, because they’re the ones that should be getting all the energy and effort.”

Even if the shirt meant nothing to the claim that our justice system works differently based on your skin color, James was unafraid. That’s a remarkably fresh way of going about your life, especially one so frequently lived in front of cameras.

The timing was perfect, following in Rose’s footsteps. The Cavs were in Brooklyn, where protests are ongoing. New York is where the Garner incident happened and it’s the largest media hub in civilization.

Also, don’t sleep on the fact that Prince William and Kate Middleton were in attendance. That game had a worldwide audience. James screamed from a very large pulpit, unafraid of frosting white people who might want to buy one of his watches you can watch movies on.

Jordan’s statements years ago were those of a coward. He put business over all else and did it in a snarky way. It was a semi-public acknowledgement that his core values had a price tag.

I’m not advocating all public figures must take stands on social issues. I’m suggesting that avoiding that part of your life for a dollar makes you smaller. James makes plenty in endorsements and those deals don’t appear to be shrinking based on the relevance of a T-shirt.

Woods should probably get more leniency than Jordan. If I can don an elbow- padded blazer and play psychologist, I always felt Woods didn’t speak out because he was a relatively conservative man, both politically and literally. He didn’t trust the media at all, but also, I think he felt it was just bad form and sometimes, he’d give unpopular answers based on his beliefs. Again, all speculation, but it would explain things a little.

James isn’t burdened with that problem. He’s clear of conscience in voicing his mind. Maybe he’s just a different type of person than his predecessors. Or, maybe James is just more comfortable because of exposure.

We’ve gotten to know James better than we ever knew Jordan. James’ Twitter presence is massive. His commercials are essentially behind-the-scenes clips of his life. Jordan’s advertisements lacked anything genuine, which is perfectly acceptable. I still YouTube “Be like Mike” ads. James has less to hide, not that Jordan, or Tiger do. They are far less trusting.

Again, without delving too deeply into the case, it seems logical for basketball players to gravitate to the fight. The association has the most African-American athletes of any sport and race relations are fragile in this country. It’s a low-risk fight to get involved in for James, Rose and every other player who donned a shirt.

You may not stand on their side, but the majority does. According to a poll conducted by USA Today and the Pew Research Center, 57 percent of Americans supported charges against the police officer in the Garner case. That number is 90 percent among black people polled.

Maybe these players don’t deserve praise for speaking out on issues. It’s entirely possible that years of our biggest sports stars abstaining has made this seem like more of a good deed than it really is.

But basketball players can be more vocal without jeopardizing their brand. Everyone knows everyone else’s immediate thoughts because of social media.

The idea that since they’re athletes they’re less entitled to an opinion is ludicrous and wrong. The only people whose opinions you want to hear are politicians, or pundits? Why do I want to hear what an athlete says?

By the rationale that you don’t care about athletes’ opinion because they are athletes, you better feel that way about pharmacists’ opinions, or line cooks at the diner.

Not answering questions about important issues makes you a coward to some extent. A human being with a functioning brain has a take on this situation.

“I try to kinda distance myself from [social issues], but this is one where I kinda really paid attention and saw what was going on,” said Nets guard Deron Williams, a shirt-wearer. “I mean, you can see the [Garner] video and you know what happened. It’s not one of those things where people are saying this and the cops are saying that. It’s there for you to see.”

Everyone doesn’t need to espouse his or his opinion on something. Not giving your opinion because you don’t feel your’s should be public is rational and valid. Not giving your opinion because you think it’s bad for your brand is disgraceful.

I don’t look for a celebrity to help me formulate my opinion on something, although I’m sure that happens for some. I look for their opinion to know they aren’t shying away from giving one. Maybe it’s not celebratory, but it’s an improvement from the past.

Categorized in: NBA