Editor’s Note: Richard Lapchick, a pioneer in racial equality and an expert on sports issues is a human rights activist. He is also a scholar and author.
The NBA received an A+ For racial hiring practices, and a B+ For gender-related hiring practices, scoring an overall A As reported in the 2022 NBA Racial and Gender Report Card Wednesday, February 13, 2009 These scores represent significant increases over the previous Wednesday. 2021 report card.
The positive trend was also evident at the league office and team levels. The NBA The league office had 43.4% of its highest ever percentage of women working in professional roles, in more than a decade. The team vice president and the team senior management categories also saw an increase, with 39% and 30% respectively. There’s still plenty of room for improvement, but it is better.
In the 2021-22 seasons, 82.4% were people of colour — the highest number of players in any sport. Head coaches and general managers were hired at significant milestones. These two positions are subject to the most scrutiny on NBA teams. These are the faces of both national and local teams. They often become the focal point of any inquiry about whether a position is held by a white or a person with a disability.
In the past season, 50% of general managers were people of color. This is an increase of 40% from 2020-21 season. There were 12 general mangers of color as of the 2021 season.
After seven out of eight head coaching vacancies in the off-season, which were filled by Black men or African Americans, the most significant turnaround was that 50% of the coaching positions were also held by people of colour.
Mike Brown and Darvin Ham, both African American coach, were hired by The Los Angeles Lakers And Sacramento Kings, respectively. At the time of publication, 16 head coaches were of color. The 15 Black head coaches beat the league’s record of 14 Black and African American coaches in 2011-12.
Brian Wright, general manager, said that although there are still many things to do to improve equity for women of color and people of colour, “it’s exciting to watch the progress being made at both the team and league level across the NBA.” San Antonio Spurs. “Projects such as the Racial and Genre Report Card allow us continue to push the conversation forward, inspiring growth and future change. We must all remain focused as a NBA community on finding solutions to achieve that goal. This foundation is shared by all of us.
The next most prominent position is that of chief executive officer or president of NBA teams. Four Black people held one of these posts: Fred Whitfield, president, vice chairman Charlotte HornetsCynthia Marshall (CEO), Dallas Mavericks), Koby Altman (president of basketball operations, Cleveland Cavaliers) and Masai Ujiri (president and vice chairman, Toronto Raptors). There were six women who held these positions: Matina Kookotronis (chief Operating Officer, Sacramento Kings), Jeanie buss (CEO Los Angeles Lakers), Gillian Zucker(president of business operation). LA ClippersMarshall (Dallas), Mel Raines, (executive vice-president of corporate communications, community involvement and facility operations), Indiana Pacers), and Gretchen Sheirr (president of business operations, Houston Rockets).
Adam Silver has called for more women and people with disabilities to be hired in the league office as well as on the teams. It begins at home.
Two women are presidents of the NBA’s league office. Kathy Behrens serves as president of player programs and social responsibility. Amy Brooks, chief innovation officer and president of team marketing operations and business operations, is also president of the league. There is no other league with two women presidents of the league office.
Byron Spruell heads the operations of the NBA league. Shareef Abdul-Rahim is the president of NBA G-League. There is no other league that has two black presidents.
Since 2014, Mark Tatum is the NBA chief operating officer and deputy commissioner. He was the highest-ranking Black person in any major American professional sports league offices when he was named.
This is an increase of 1.4 percentage point from the previous year and the best category for women representation. This percentage was higher than the 43.6% reported in the 2009-10 report card.
For the third year, the NBA league office has set a record for people with color. 43.7% of professional staff positions were held by people of colour. This is an increase of 2.1 percentage point from the 41.6% at the end 2020-2021 regular season.
“I have had many conversations and been able to share my thoughts with Adam Silver,” stated the Rev. Jesse Jackson is the founder of Rainbow PUSH, and a longtime civil right leader. “I am impressed by and encouraged at the achievements of the NBA both on and off the courts, as documented in Dr. Lapchick’s Annual Report. They have been a strong advocate for social justice over the past two years, and players are given the right to peacefully protest different injustices in our world. The NBA has made significant hirings at its league office to increase diversity and inclusion. Many teams have added women and men from color to their executive ranks, and there are now a record number minority coaches on the sidelines. This league is setting an example not only in sports, but also in business and culture. The NBA deserves our praise.
There was some improvement at the team-level, but there was much more to do beyond the head coach or GM positions. Perhaps the first change was in the composition of team governors. Because of the historical significance of the term “owner” in relation to individual individuals, the NBA was the first league that changed the title of team owners to “governors”. This change was not made by any other league as of the date of publication.
Four majority governors were of color across the league. Michael Jordan is the majority governor of the Charlotte Hornets and also serves as their chairman. Vivek Ranadive is the chairman, CEO, and governor of Sacramento Kings. He is an Indian national. Joe Tsai, a Taiwanese national, is the majority governor, chairman and chief of the Sacramento Kings. Brooklyn Nets. Marc Lasry, a team governor who was born in Morocco is Marc Lasry. Milwaukee Bucks. This is the third consecutive season that four governors of color from different races have run their teams simultaneously. This is a first in professional leagues.
There are three primary team governors who are women. Jeanie Buss, the controlling governor of the Lakers and the CEO of the team, is Jeanie Buss. Gayle Benson serves as the principal governor. New Orleans Pelicans. Jody Allen is the majority governor of the team. Portland Trail Blazers.
The Boston Celtics And Golden State WarriorsFour minority investor governors were from different races who met with the two teams in the 2022 NBA Finals. James Cash and Mark Wan have a minority share in the Celtics. Chamath Palihapitiya, Brigette Lau and a minority share in the Warriors.
In the 2021-22 season, there were 12 women and 37 people of color who served as minority team governors.
The scores for the NBA — an A+ For hiring practices based on raciality, please see a B+ For gender-specific hiring practices and an overall A The 2021 report card showed significant increases in spite of the fact we used a higher standard to measure race, as we were changing to reflect 2020 census. TIDES acknowledges that billion-dollar teams now exist and that the proportion of the population that falls within the billionaire bracket is different from the U.S. Census racial group. However, this is the criteria that we use in our racial- and gender report cards.
The percentage of people of colour in team C-suite posts was 26.7% in 2021-2022. This is up from 24% in last year. In 2020-21, the percentage of people from color in team vice-president positions was slightly higher at 26.1%. This is an increase of 25.5%. The percentage of people of colour in the team senior management category increased from 31.3% up to 32.5%. This is not an A grade.
Teams performed much better and saw a substantial increase from 41.9% to 46.7% in the category of team professionals staff.
Even though there are areas that need improvement, I am proud of the NBA’s marked improvements in its already impressive record of hiring women of color and people of colour into leadership positions. The NBA stands out from other professional sports leagues. We often hear about the increase in TV viewers for the regular season, the playoffs, and the NBA Finals. But it’s also remarkable that the NBA saw a record $10Billion in revenue in this past season. The game is more popular than ever, and the NBA has once again been a strong brand even during the two years of COVID-19 or the racial reckoning. An enormous fan base, great revenue generation, and excellent leadership. Adam Silver and his entire team deserve congratulations.
Richard E. Lapchick, director of the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport (IDEAS), isTIDESAt the University of Central Florida. He is the author or 17 books, the annual Racial and Genre Report Card and president of the Institute for Sport and Social Justice. His regular commentary on diversity in sport has been for ESPN.com. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter @richardlapchick