[JRutledge]

Originally posted by theboys
I've been thinking about this post, and Larry Bird's comments, a lot. It concerns me when people start talking about racial superiority in any form or fashion, even when a person of one race speaks of the superiority of another race. Bird makes a blanket statement about the superiority of African-American athletes which, on the surface, when you look at the make-up of D1 and pro basketball teams, appears to be true. But, I think there's more to it than race.

Take the SI article a few weeks ago, which asked why fewer African-Americans play baseball anymore. Its not because whites or hispanics are superior. It has a lot to do with culture, opportunity and, simply, sport preference.

I'll use my 15 year-old son as an example. He's white. We live in a suburb north of Atlanta, a predominately white area. Its almost impossible for my son to find a good game of pick-up basketball where we live. So, he spends a lot of time alone, doing shooting and ballhandling drills. Sometime, we'll drive an hour to Run 'N' Shoot, an indoor basketball facility on the south side of town. Several times we have been the only white people in the gym. Is the gym full of superior athletes? No. Its full of people who play basketball all the time. My son holds his own because he plays basketball all the time.

I mean, there are exceptions - Kobe, Tracy, Vince, etc. But, was Kareem a superior athlete, or a person with an incredible work ethic?

Sorry for the long post. I just think when we start talking about racial superiority we start heading down a slippery slope.

I think you make a great point. But I do believe that most Athletes in America are African-American. But it is not because of some genetic disposition. It is because of opportunity and focus. It is the very reason that all around the world, some of the most successful atheletes are some of the poorest communities. When you have little economic opportunity in other aspects of life, you tend to focus on athletics and especially those sports that are not very expensive to play (Soccer and basketball for example). I think this is the very reason African-Americans excel at basketball. There is a basketball court in every poor community in the country. There are only a very small percentage of communities that have a hockey rink for example.

Sports are completely about opportunity and focus. The reason that the Williams sisters are just about the only Black players on the world circuit. I am sure they could have been just as good of basketball players or track athletes if their Father focused them in that direction. But instead he choose Tennis and they are where they are today because of that focus.

Peace