Indiana. In 49 states, it’s just basketball….this is Indiana. But it’s more than basketball — it’s a certain brand of basketball.
Hoosiers. The 1954 Milan Indians, the real-life Hoosiers. Jimmy Chitwood. Bobby Plump, the real-life Jimmy Chitwood. Crewcuts. John Wooden. Fieldhouses. Larry Bird from French Lick. Shooting on makeshift baskets right next to the cornrows. The Indiana Hoosiers. Bobby Knight. Steve Alford. Damon Bailey. Basic below-the-rim basketball.
Notice a common trend? Everything on that list is whiter than Coach Knight’s locks.
Oscar Robertson. Isiah Thomas. Reggie Miller. Calbert Cheaney. Danny Granger.
Is it just me, or is that list very Barck Obamaesque — just “white” enough.
Considering both the history of its basketball and its demographics. you can imagine how Indiana reacted when the Indiana Pacers suddenly morphed into the Portland Jailblazers. Reggie Miller retired and it went from “boom, baby” to “boom, byotch.” Neither the situation nor the reaction was pretty.
Ron Artest was rapping, domestic abusing and charging into the stands.
Steven Jackson was swinging at fans like he was Albert Pujols and they were fastballs. Either that or playing Omar from The Wire at local strip clubs.
Jamaal Tinsley was stealing millions sitting on the bench injured, sick and grumpy. Hey, those bar fights will take a toll on you.
Marquis Daniels was Tinsley’s wingman. Yes, the guy with the tat of a kid blowing his head off with a shotgun on his forearm.
Shawne “Murder Was the Case That They Gave My Friend” Williams was racking up both police “situations” and DNPs.
Now, in the state of Indiana’s defense, basketball has always been as much about how you carry yourself as it has been about winning. Just watch Hoosiers again, reminisce about Larry Legend or read up on what Bobby Knight and John Wooden demanded from the players, and you’ll see exactly what I mean. That being said, only a fool would try to argue that race hasn’t played a big part in this mess.
Ever since things hit rock bottom in Indianapolis — the Jackson strip-club shootout back in 2006 — Pacers President Larry Bird has been working around the clock to change the culture, or “lighten” the atmosphere to put it more bluntly. He’s stated that he doesn’t want “milk drinkers” in the past, but it’s obvious he does want milk complexion. It’s also obvious that the Pacers have cared more about changing the look of the roster than its talent level. Even though a person’s race is of no consequence to me personally, honestly, yes, I have to admit that this is a smart business move. But I also think that Bird has gone way too far with his “whitewashing” of the Pacers.
Check out some of his moves since arriving in Naptown:
Signed Sarunas Jasikevicius as a free agent.
Traded Ron Artest to the Kings for Peja Stojakovic.
Traded Al Harrington, Stephen Jackson and filler to the Warriors for Mike Dunleavy Jr., Troy Murphy and filler.
Exported all black players and imported Josh McRoberts and Rasho Nesterovic as part of two multi-player trades.
Dumped former prize first-round pick Shawne Williams in a trade for basically nothing.
Drafted Tyler Hansbrough way earlier than any sane basketball executive ever would.
Reports have surfaced that he will flat out cut Marquis Daniels, one of the team’s top players.
When the season starts, the Indiana Pacers will likely have seven white players and eight black players. That’s almost 50-50 in an age when the league is predominantly black. Most teams don’t even have three or four white players. The only other team that could possibly even have seven is the Utah Jazz. Yes, the Pacers are out-whiting even the Jazz. Ouch. Next thing you know hip-hop will be banned from games and the players will be wearing Stockton shorts. He’s taken this team from Maybachs to Mayberry.
Not only have a lot of these moves been terrible from a sheer talent perspective, but it’s ridiculously obvious what Bird is doing here. He’s “whitewashing” the Pacers with hopes that the community will once again back the franchise. It’s getting out of hand. I even heard a rumor that Bird has hired the Wayans Brothers’ make-up artist from White Girls to “whitewash” Danny Granger before games. Don’t shoot the messenger — that’s just the rumor I heard.
The Pacers franchise needed to be called out on this. Why? Recently, the NBA has made great progress racially after a period when it took several steps back. People don’t look at the new faces of the game — Dwight Howard, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James — as black or white. This was not the case with Allen Iverson, the man who became the post-Jordan face of the NBA. But it was the case with Michael Jordan — he transcended race. Along with people like Bill Cosby, Colin Powell, Martin Luther King Jr., Michael Jackson (rest in peace), Oprah, Tiger Woods and Will Smith, Jordan paved the way for the first black President. I mean, we just elected a black President, and Bird is busy putting together the honkiest roster since the 1945-46 Rochester Royals.
Bird’s not making progress on the basketball court, and he’s making even less progress socially. It’s a joke. I realize he identifies with a lot of these white players. That’s fine. But there are plenty of classy, hard-working black players out there, too. Look no further than Pacers superstar Danny Granger, one of the league’s best players and role models. T.J. Ford is another fine example right underneath Bird’s nose.
I’m not sure if it’s Bird himself or the Simons from the owner’s box, but the Pacers need to start bringing in players based on capability and character — not color. The Blazers rebuilt their reputation and roster without “whitewashing” it, so it can definitely be done. The Pacers are likely only bringing in the white to bring in more green, but in the process they’re giving themselves a black eye.
(Adam Best is the senior editor of the FanSided.com Sports Network and the twisted mind behind Fan Addict. Follow him on Twitter.)