It’s amazing that in 1907 a Harvard-educated African-American man could get thrown out of Washington, D.C.’s Central YMCA for simply wanting to watch a basketball game.
That fact, in itself, gives modern folks a fairly good idea of the territory Americans have covered over the past century.
It’s not like we should consider congratulating ourselves on that journey, which we so often do.
Rather, it’s time to stop and honor those — such as Edward Bancroft Henderson, the 24-year-old man who got tossed that night — who actually went out and did something about it.
More than 100 years ago, Henderson formed a league for black players. We might never know about him if not for an astoundingly good book from Bob Kuska, “Hot Potato.”
Sadly, like these early pioneers of the game, Kuska’s book itself has been overlooked. A great and important read, Hot Potato was published in hardcover in 2004 and later in paperback by the University of Virginia Press.
Over the past century, African-Americans have taken ownership of the game and done some pretty special things with that ownership.
If you love the brotherhood (or sisterhood) of hoops, then you have to get a copy of Kuska’s book.
It should be required reading for every sportswriter, every broadcaster, every millionaire NBA star, every coach, everyone who purports to love the game we have today.
It would be a great book for Kobe Bryant or LeBron James or Michael Jordan — as he prepares to take over ownership of the Charlotte Bobcats.
Those guys are the leaders of the game in the new century. How much better their vision will be if they take the time to consider the efforts of Henderson and his contemporaries.
And while we’re honoring Henderson, wouldn’t it be nice if Washington’s Central YMCA put a plaque on the wall to recognize his contributions to the game? The NBA should also do something.
You better scramble if you really care about Hot Potato, there are simply not a lot of copies of this treasure in print.
http://www.amazon.com/Hot-Potato-Washington-Basketball-Americas/dp/0813925568/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1267883153&sr=1-1
Roland Lazenby is the author of Jerry West, The Life And Legend Of A Basketball Icon, recently released by ESPN Books.
One Comment
Are you a professional journalist? You write very well.