The restart of the 2019-20 NBA season had social justice as a crucial 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. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum, and NBPA Executive Director Michele Roberts will also join the Coalition’s board. The first board members are:
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 the 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 establishment of the Coalition marks a further advancement in the NBA and NBPA’s continuous initiatives to promote social justice. This builds on the mutual objective of the 2019-20 season restart in Orlando, while also continuing the longstanding efforts by players and teams to confront racial inequality, push for significant transformation, and encourage increased 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 implemented measures across the league to encourage civic engagement and enhance voting access and voter awareness prior to the 2020 election. As such, 23 teams pledged their arenas or training facilities for voting-related activities, and all 30 teams actively participated in promoting civic engagement. Collaborations were also made with players, network partners, and non-partisan organizations such as I Am A Voter and When We All Vote. These collaborations included advertising during the postseason, participation in National Voter Registration Day, National Vote Early Day, National Black Voter Day, and sharing voting, registration, and census resources with teams and players. The NBA family also collaborated with More Than A Vote, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, and Power The Polls to support the “We Got Next” poll worker recruitment campaign. This campaign managed to recruit 20,000 new poll workers, with 10,000 registering after the league and union organized a virtual fan section during Game 1 of the 2020 NBA Finals featuring 40 first-time volunteers, President Barack Obama, and NBA legends.
