The unlevel playing field - "Contrary to popular perception, poverty and broken homes are underrepresented in the NBA, not overrepresented. ... We believe that skills always trump circumstances. But that's a myth."
posted by mrgrimm on Aug 1, 2011 - 16 comments

Greatest calls in sports is a selection of 32 great calls in broadcast sports, chosen by Joe Posnanski, obviously US-centric but featuring some good choices. Want some elation this Friday? [more inside]
posted by LobsterMitten on Oct 15, 2010 - 47 comments

Are NBA referees racially biased when calling fouls? In a paper [PDF] released yesterday, economists Wolfers and Price claim that an all-white team would win two extra games over an 82-game season.
posted by Aloysius Bear on May 2, 2007 - 99 comments

ESPN.com's Scoop Jackson on the Detroit Pistons' Ben Wallace: "Although no one will admit it, Ben Wallace is the image the NBA doesn't want... He's that unspoken stereotype that white America has of the black athlete. He's what they fear." I found this to be an unusually frank examination of race in American professional sports.
posted by dammitjim on Jun 17, 2005 - 34 comments