NBA, NBPA establish the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition
The restart of the 2019-20 NBA season heavily incorporated social justice as a key element.
NEW YORK — The National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) today announced the formation of the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition, an organization that will lead the NBA family’s collective efforts to advance equality and social justice. Through its mission to leverage the game’s influence to raise awareness, educate and advocate for meaningful reform, the Coalition will focus on action and change in several areas, including voting access and criminal justice system reform at the national, state and local level.
The leadership of the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition will comprise five team governors, five players, and two coaches. Furthermore, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum, and NBPA Executive Director Michele Roberts will join the Coalition’s board. The first board members include:
NBA Board of Governors:
- Managing General Partner of Miami Heat, Micky Arison
- Steve Ballmer, L.A. Clippers Chairman
- Clay Bennett, Oklahoma City Thunder Chairman
- Marc Lasry, Milwaukee Bucks Governor
- Governor and Chairman of Sacramento Kings, Vivek Ranadivé
National Basketball Players Association:
- Carmelo Anthony, Portland Trail Blazers Forward
- Avery Bradley, Los Angeles Lakers Guard
- Sterling Brown, Milwaukee Bucks Guard-Forward
- Donovan Mitchell, Utah Jazz Guard
- Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves Forward
National Basketball Coaches Association:
- Lloyd Pierce, Atlanta Hawks Head Coach
- Doc Rivers, Philadelphia 76ers Head Coach
The Coalition’s formation is a further move by the NBA and NBPA to promote social justice. It expands on the shared objective of the 2019-20 season restart in Orlando and continues the long-standing efforts of players and teams to combat racial inequality, push for significant change, and encourage more civic participation.
Throughout their time on the Orlando campus, players, coaches and staff participated in social justice programming organized by the league and union and accessed educational resources and expert speakers, including former first lady Michelle Obama, motivational speaker Eric Thomas and NBA legend and former United States Senator Bill Bradley, to help sustain momentum in addressing systemic inequities and creating meaningful change. Additionally, the jerseys from the opening weekend of the NBA restart, including those displaying social justice messages, were auctioned at Auctions.NBA.com to support a newly-created Player’s Justice Fund administered by the NBPA Foundation.
In early August, the NBA Board of Governors announced a $300 million initial contribution to establish the first-ever NBA Foundation dedicated to creating greater economic empowerment in the Black community and in October named the inaugural Board of Directors, which included Sacramento Kings Forward Harrison Barnes, New Orleans Pelicans Governor Gayle Benson, Philadelphia 76ers Forward Tobias Harris, Charlotte Hornets Chairman Michael Jordan, Atlanta Hawks Principal Governor Tony Ressler, NBPA Executive Director Michele Roberts, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and NBA Board of Governors Chairman and Toronto Raptors Governor Larry Tanenbaum.
The NBA and NBPA took action across the league to enhance civic engagement and boost voting access and awareness before the 2020 election. They committed 23 team arenas or practice facilities to voting-related activities, while all 30 teams promoted civic engagement. The league and union, along with players, network partners and non-partisan organizations like I Am A Voter and When We All Vote, featured ads during the postseason. They also participated in National Voter Registration Day, National Vote Early Day, and National Black Voter Day, while distributing voting, registration and census resources to teams and players. The NBA family collaborated with More Than A Vote, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and Power The Polls to back the “We Got Next” poll worker recruitment campaign. This resulted in 20,000 new poll workers, 10,000 of which signed up after the league and union hosted 40 first-time volunteers, President Barack Obama and NBA legends in a virtual fan section during the first game of the 2020 NBA Finals.
