Photo: Graham Denholm/GettyThe Harlem Globetrotters, the entertaining and talented club of hoopers known for their trick moves and hilarious on-court antics, are looking to become part of the NBA. It’s something the exhibition team believes is “long overdue.“This week, the Globetrottersposted an open letterasking to be recognized for its influence on the modern NBA. In their request, the team looked back to and referenced when the NBA first allowed Black players into the league in the 1950s.According to the club, the NBA “took” its players instead of bringing the Globetrotters into the league as a franchise. This includes Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, a former Globetrotter who was the first Black player to join the NBA.“People say it was that game in 1949 that sparked the integration of the NBA. Three years after Jackie Robinson broke the baseball color barrier, y’all finally allowed African American players to ball,” the letter reads. “But instead of just letting us in, you took our players. The first Black player to sign an NBA contract — Nat Sweetwater Clifton, a Harlem Globetrotter. The first Black man to play in an NBA game — Earl Lloyd, another Globetrotter.“Ethan Miller/Getty"While it was hard to see them go, we were proud of our young Black men for ushering in such a significant change to the game,” they wrote.The club said it believes its members are “on par” with the NBA’s players, and sincerumorshave been emerging that the league is looking to add new franchises in the near future, the Globetrotters want in.“So, if you really believe what you’ve been saying about social justice, going back to ‘normal’ needs to look different,” the Globetrotters said. “You can’t just act like we don’t exist anymore. It’s time to right the wrongs and rewrite history. It’s time for the NBA to honor what the Globetrotters have done for OUR sport, both here in the U.S. and around the globe.““Based on what we’ve already proven, we can field a team of talent on par with the pros of today, and we want the chance to do that,” they added. “As a world-renowned and legendary professional basketball team, we petition Commissioner Adam Silver, the NBA governors and the powers that be to grant The Original Harlem Globetrotters an NBA franchise. Not now, but right now!“The Globetrotters' Executive Vice President and General Manager Jeff Munn said in a follow-up statement that the team stands “ready to negotiate for a franchise.“RELATED VIDEO: Russell Westbrook Is Opening Middle and High Schools in Los Angeles: I ‘Want to Inspire and Empower’According toYahoo Sports, the Globetrotters played against NBA teams just twice in its history. Those games occurred in 1948 and 1949 when the club beat the then-Minneapolis Lakers.If the Globetrotters were let into the NBA, they would be the third active NBA franchise in New York, along with the Brooklyn Nets and New York Knicks. If the team stayed in Harlem, they would share the same territory as the Knicks, who play at Madison Square Garden.The NBA did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Photo: Graham Denholm/Getty
The Harlem Globetrotters, the entertaining and talented club of hoopers known for their trick moves and hilarious on-court antics, are looking to become part of the NBA. It’s something the exhibition team believes is “long overdue.“This week, the Globetrottersposted an open letterasking to be recognized for its influence on the modern NBA. In their request, the team looked back to and referenced when the NBA first allowed Black players into the league in the 1950s.According to the club, the NBA “took” its players instead of bringing the Globetrotters into the league as a franchise. This includes Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, a former Globetrotter who was the first Black player to join the NBA.“People say it was that game in 1949 that sparked the integration of the NBA. Three years after Jackie Robinson broke the baseball color barrier, y’all finally allowed African American players to ball,” the letter reads. “But instead of just letting us in, you took our players. The first Black player to sign an NBA contract — Nat Sweetwater Clifton, a Harlem Globetrotter. The first Black man to play in an NBA game — Earl Lloyd, another Globetrotter.“Ethan Miller/Getty"While it was hard to see them go, we were proud of our young Black men for ushering in such a significant change to the game,” they wrote.The club said it believes its members are “on par” with the NBA’s players, and sincerumorshave been emerging that the league is looking to add new franchises in the near future, the Globetrotters want in.“So, if you really believe what you’ve been saying about social justice, going back to ‘normal’ needs to look different,” the Globetrotters said. “You can’t just act like we don’t exist anymore. It’s time to right the wrongs and rewrite history. It’s time for the NBA to honor what the Globetrotters have done for OUR sport, both here in the U.S. and around the globe.““Based on what we’ve already proven, we can field a team of talent on par with the pros of today, and we want the chance to do that,” they added. “As a world-renowned and legendary professional basketball team, we petition Commissioner Adam Silver, the NBA governors and the powers that be to grant The Original Harlem Globetrotters an NBA franchise. Not now, but right now!“The Globetrotters’ Executive Vice President and General Manager Jeff Munn said in a follow-up statement that the team stands “ready to negotiate for a franchise.“RELATED VIDEO: Russell Westbrook Is Opening Middle and High Schools in Los Angeles: I ‘Want to Inspire and Empower’According toYahoo Sports, the Globetrotters played against NBA teams just twice in its history. Those games occurred in 1948 and 1949 when the club beat the then-Minneapolis Lakers.If the Globetrotters were let into the NBA, they would be the third active NBA franchise in New York, along with the Brooklyn Nets and New York Knicks. If the team stayed in Harlem, they would share the same territory as the Knicks, who play at Madison Square Garden.The NBA did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
The Harlem Globetrotters, the entertaining and talented club of hoopers known for their trick moves and hilarious on-court antics, are looking to become part of the NBA. It’s something the exhibition team believes is “long overdue.”
This week, the Globetrottersposted an open letterasking to be recognized for its influence on the modern NBA. In their request, the team looked back to and referenced when the NBA first allowed Black players into the league in the 1950s.
According to the club, the NBA “took” its players instead of bringing the Globetrotters into the league as a franchise. This includes Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, a former Globetrotter who was the first Black player to join the NBA.
“People say it was that game in 1949 that sparked the integration of the NBA. Three years after Jackie Robinson broke the baseball color barrier, y’all finally allowed African American players to ball,” the letter reads. “But instead of just letting us in, you took our players. The first Black player to sign an NBA contract — Nat Sweetwater Clifton, a Harlem Globetrotter. The first Black man to play in an NBA game — Earl Lloyd, another Globetrotter.”
Ethan Miller/Getty
“While it was hard to see them go, we were proud of our young Black men for ushering in such a significant change to the game,” they wrote.
The club said it believes its members are “on par” with the NBA’s players, and sincerumorshave been emerging that the league is looking to add new franchises in the near future, the Globetrotters want in.
“So, if you really believe what you’ve been saying about social justice, going back to ‘normal’ needs to look different,” the Globetrotters said. “You can’t just act like we don’t exist anymore. It’s time to right the wrongs and rewrite history. It’s time for the NBA to honor what the Globetrotters have done for OUR sport, both here in the U.S. and around the globe.”
“Based on what we’ve already proven, we can field a team of talent on par with the pros of today, and we want the chance to do that,” they added. “As a world-renowned and legendary professional basketball team, we petition Commissioner Adam Silver, the NBA governors and the powers that be to grant The Original Harlem Globetrotters an NBA franchise. Not now, but right now!”
The Globetrotters’ Executive Vice President and General Manager Jeff Munn said in a follow-up statement that the team stands “ready to negotiate for a franchise.”
RELATED VIDEO: Russell Westbrook Is Opening Middle and High Schools in Los Angeles: I ‘Want to Inspire and Empower’
According toYahoo Sports, the Globetrotters played against NBA teams just twice in its history. Those games occurred in 1948 and 1949 when the club beat the then-Minneapolis Lakers.
If the Globetrotters were let into the NBA, they would be the third active NBA franchise in New York, along with the Brooklyn Nets and New York Knicks. If the team stayed in Harlem, they would share the same territory as the Knicks, who play at Madison Square Garden.
The NBA did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
source: people.com
