It’s often helpful to have a strong collective, and the right platform to make one’s voice heard while enacting significant change. Recognizing this, former player Craig Hodges once called for the participants of the 1991 NBA Finals to boycott Game 1.
However, not all players shared Hodges’ activist mindset, including the superstars of the Finals teams – Michael Jordan, his teammate on the Bulls, simply told Hodges he was “crazy.” Additionally, Magic Johnson from the L.A. Lakers remarked that his actions were “too extreme.”
A divided country
Back then, the NBA, just like the whole United States, was going through a rather politically charged phase. One major trigger had been the Rodney King case. Just months before the Finals, the Black man had been brutally beaten by five white police officers.
This controversial incident sparked a wide-ranging discussion about police brutality against Black people, as well as systemic racism. After all, at the time, there were no Black owners and almost no Black coaches, even though 75% of the players in the league were African American – this was just one of many demeaning examples.
Therefore, Hodges decided to take action as an activist, stating in response to Magic’s “extreme” claim, “What’s happening to our people in this country is extreme.”
Parallels to Colin Kaepernick
The 6’2″ guard, drafted in 1982, was one of the best three-point shooters of his era. Along with Larry Bird, Hodges is the only player in NBA history to win the Three-Point Contest three times consecutively at the All-Star Weekend. Craig’s exceptional shooting prowess made him a perfect fit for the Bulls team built around MJ and Scottie Pippen.
Off the court, Hodges drew attention to his political activism, similar to Colin Kaepernick’s 2016 protests against injustice. Like the former NFL quarterback, this likely impacted his athletic career. Not long after Craig failed attempt to stage a protest, although he was only in his early thirties at the time, he never played in the NBA again. Today, his name is not as widely known.
Ultimately, the first game of the 1991 NBA Finals proceeded as usual. Hodges and the Bulls won the ring, and they repeated their success the following year. However, whether the now 63-year-old could fully enjoy this while the country was embroiled in political turmoil is a question worth pondering.
“Our generation dropped the ball as a lot of us were more concerned with our own economic gain. We were at that point where branding was just beginning and we got caught up in individual branding rather than a unified movement,” he reflected.
While this sentiment might have been a slight dig at then-NBA superstars, Craig, in hindsight, wasn’t upset with Johnson and Jordan for not joining the potential protest; in fact, he understood the latter’s decision.
“Michael didn’t speak out largely because he didn’t know what to say – not because he was a bad person,” the former two-time NBA champ remarked.