Off Topic · Grant Hill’s Response to Jalen Rose (page 1)
I am a fan, friend and longtime competitor of the Fab Five. I have competed against Jalen Rose and Chris Webber since the age of 13. At Michigan, the Fab Five represented a cultural phenomenon that impacted the country in a permanent and positive way. The very idea of the Fab Five elicited pride and promise in much the same way the Georgetown teams did in the mid-1980s when I was in high school and idolized them. Their journey from youthful icons to successful men today is a road map for so many young, black men (and women) who saw their journey through the powerful documentary, “The Fab Five.”
It was a sad and somewhat pathetic turn of events, therefore, to see friends narrating this interesting documentary about their moment in time and calling me a bitch and worse, calling all black players at Duke “Uncle Toms” and, to some degree, disparaging my parents for their education, work ethic and commitment to each other and to me. I should have guessed there was something regrettable in the documentary when I received a Twitter apology from Jalen before its premiere. I am aware Jalen has gone to some length to explain his remarks about my family in numerous interviews, so I believe he has some admiration for them.
In his garbled but sweeping comment that Duke recruits only “black players that were ‘Uncle Toms,’ ” Jalen seems to change the usual meaning of those very vitriolic words into his own meaning, i.e., blacks from two-parent, middle-class families. He leaves us all guessing exactly what he believes today.
I am beyond fortunate to have two parents who are still working well into their 60s. They received great educations and use them every day. My parents taught me a personal ethic I try to live by and pass on to my children.
I come from a strong legacy of black Americans. My namesake, Henry Hill, my father’s father, was a day laborer in Baltimore. He could not read or write until he was taught to do so by my grandmother. His first present to my dad was a set of encyclopedias, which I now have. He wanted his only child, my father, to have a good education, so he made numerous sacrifices to see that he got an education, including attending Yale.
This is part of our great tradition as black Americans. We aspire for the best or better for our children and work hard to make that happen for them. Jalen’s mother is part of our great black tradition and made the same sacrifices for him.
My teammates at Duke — all of them, black and white — were a band of brothers who came together to play at the highest level for the best coach in basketball. I know most of the black players who preceded and followed me at Duke. They all contribute to our tradition of excellence on the court.
It is insulting and ignorant to suggest that men like Johnny Dawkins (coach at Stanford), Tommy Amaker (coach at Harvard), Billy King (general manager of the Nets), Tony Lang (coach of the Mitsubishi Diamond Dolphins in Japan), Thomas Hill (small-business owner in Texas), Jeff Capel (former coach at Oklahoma and Virginia Commonwealth), Kenny Blakeney (assistant coach at Harvard), Jay Williams (ESPN analyst), Shane Battier (Memphis Grizzlies) and Chris Duhon (Orlando Magic) ever sold out their race.
To hint that those who grew up in a household with a mother and father are somehow less black than those who did not is beyond ridiculous. All of us are extremely proud of the current Duke team, especially Nolan Smith. He was raised by his mother, plays in memory of his late father and carries himself with the pride and confidence that they instilled in him.
The sacrifice, the effort, the education and the friendships I experienced in my four years are cherished. The many Duke graduates I have met around the world are also my “family,” and they are a special group of people. A good education is a privilege.
Just as Jalen has founded a charter school in Michigan, we are expected to use our education to help others, to improve life for those who need our assistance and to use the excellent education we have received to better the world.
A highlight of my time at Duke was getting to know the great John Hope Franklin, John B. Duke Professor of History and the leading scholar of the last century on the total history of African-Americans in this country. His insights and perspectives contributed significantly to my overall development and helped me understand myself, my forefathers and my place in the world.
Ad ingenium faciendum, toward the building of character, is a phrase I recently heard. To me, it is the essence of an educational experience. Struggling, succeeding, trying again and having fun within a nurturing but competitive environment built character in all of us, including every black graduate of Duke.
My mother always says, “You can live without Chaucer and you can live without calculus, but you cannot make it in the wide, wide world without common sense.” As we get older, we understand the importance of these words. Adulthood is nothing but a series of choices: you can say yes or no, but you cannot avoid saying one or the other. In the end, those who are successful are those who adjust and adapt to the decisions they have made and make the best of them.
I caution my fabulous five friends to avoid stereotyping me and others they do not know in much the same way so many people stereotyped them back then for their appearance and swagger. I wish for you the restoration of the bond that made you friends, brothers and icons.
I am proud of my family. I am proud of my Duke championships and all my Duke teammates. And, I am proud I never lost a game against the Fab Five.
Grant Henry Hill
Phoenix Suns
Duke ‘94
http://thequad.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/16/grant-hills-response-to-jalen-rose/
Never understood the impact of the self bravado other than droopy shorts and black socks. What did they accomplish?
They are not even on the books after admitting to breaking the rules.
They failed to win a championship. They self congradulated themselves in the manner of the Miami Heat before they accomplished a thing.
Jalen as a pro did nothing but garner a huge contract and disappoint the teams that paid him a kings ransom.
Jalen was successful if measured by money. He made a lot of it.
That response by Grant Hill was wonderful.
Any successful journey from being disadvantaged begins with educaton.
How many banners they have?
I was wrong about Jalen, he is still a punk.
Very deep and poignant response by Grant Hill.
Marv wrote:beautifully put by grant.
my favorite line was the last one
DrAlphaeus wrote:Wow, thanks Supreme and holfresh (I learned about this article via his locked thread).Very deep and poignant response by Grant Hill.
*gasp*
the OT forum is where dreams are made
Nalod wrote:What did they accomplish?
I think there impact transcends basketball and is more of a cultural one.
They failed to win a championship. They self congradulated themselves in the manner of the Miami Heat before they accomplished a thing.
I'll always remember CWebb's choke. That said, the documentary does do a good job of showing his walk off the court. Too much pressure for a 19 year old kid
I was wrong about Jalen, he is still a punk.
I think Jalen is a great analyst and off the court he tends to be a pleasant person. But shame on him. He wore his producer hat and said some bullshit to make his documentary more popular
There was no need for all of this based on the view point of an immature Rose over 10 yrs ago. But I could see the good a statement like this from Hill could do since it promotes good family structure.
jusnice wrote:One of my best professor, Reginald Butler (whose son is Butterfly from Digable Planets), would often relate stories of having to hide his school books in his pants and shirts while he walked home to avoid being brutalized by the brothers on the street. I've done a lot of research on this matter and it is a shame that people like Rose continue to reinforce this image that being intelligent, being a good student, and having a supporting family structure is somehow not black.
Sad, but true. One of my faovirte movies is "Finding Forrester" and the young, black genius has to hide his intelligence to fit in with his peers. That's what your quote reminded me of. As well as this bright young kid I went to high school with. He was a varsity swimmer and attended University of Pennsylvania. I do know he dealt with a lot of BS for something that should'v ebeen celebrated
jusnice wrote:I grew up in a very diverse town in NJ. The first town to voluntarily de-segregate their school systems prior to Brown vs. the Board of Ed. It was always interesting to me the treatment that intelligent / academically focused black kids would receive from their peers who were not. They were frequent targets of abuse and we often told that they were white. In college, I studied African American and Slave History extensively. One of my best professor, Reginald Butler (whose son is Butterfly from Digable Planets), would often relate stories of having to hide his school books in his pants and shirts while he walked home to avoid being brutalized by the brothers on the street. I've done a lot of research on this matter and it is a shame that people like Rose continue to reinforce this image that being intelligent, being a good student, and having a supporting family structure is somehow not black. I've spent some time with Grant Hill whil at the University of Virginia (had the pleasure of him dunking on me repeatedly during a pick up game one summer) and he should be viewed as a role model to young black men and women, not a Uncle Tom. It is a shameful paradox that many people of African American descent continue to reinforce the notion that it is somehow not "black" to be like Grant. I got goosebumps when reading his article and can only hope that it gets some play among the younger generation who may be dealing with the same pressure I witnessed when I was a kid.
Hear, hear.
newyorknewyork wrote:If you watched the documentary though you can tell that Rose was speaking about his viewpoint as freshman in college. It was basically what he sold himself on in order to try to get a mental edge when facing Duke, one of the elite teams, and his main comp Hill. Plus the fact that he was admittedly jealous of Hill.There was no need for all of this based on the view point of an immature Rose over 10 yrs ago. But I could see the good a statement like this from Hill could do since it promotes good family structure.
I'll need to rewatch it. I didn't anticiapte this reaction from Grant. But then again I was hammered from watching college hoops and was eating fajitas
newyorknewyork wrote:If you watched the documentary though you can tell that Rose was speaking about his viewpoint as freshman in college. It was basically what he sold himself on in order to try to get a mental edge when facing Duke, one of the elite teams, and his main comp Hill. Plus the fact that he was admittedly jealous of Hill.There was no need for all of this based on the view point of an immature Rose over 10 yrs ago. But I could see the good a statement like this from Hill could do since it promotes good family structure.
Haven't seen the documentary myself. I think newyork's point is fair: that Jalen was talking as Jalen-the-then-poor-teenager, certainly not Jalen-the-now-millionaire. And he may have a fair point about Duke admissions and how they would have viewed someone of his background. But ultimately, that frustration with Duke gets taken out on people like the Grant Hills of this world, and they get ostracized for just trying to better themselves and simply being who they are, hence his response.
DrAlphaeus wrote:newyorknewyork wrote:If you watched the documentary though you can tell that Rose was speaking about his viewpoint as freshman in college. It was basically what he sold himself on in order to try to get a mental edge when facing Duke, one of the elite teams, and his main comp Hill. Plus the fact that he was admittedly jealous of Hill.There was no need for all of this based on the view point of an immature Rose over 10 yrs ago. But I could see the good a statement like this from Hill could do since it promotes good family structure.
Haven't seen the documentary myself. I think newyork's point is fair: that Jalen was talking as Jalen-the-then-poor-teenager, certainly not Jalen-the-now-millionaire. And he may have a fair point about Duke admissions and how they would have viewed someone of his background. But ultimately, that frustration with Duke gets taken out on people like the Grant Hills of this world, and they get ostracized for just trying to better themselves and simply being who they are, hence his response.
Chuck Klosterman raised an interesting point a few months ago on one of Simmons' podcasts. They were talking about recruiting at Duke, and how hard it had to be, and how Duke likely will have an increasingly difficult time retianing the best black talents, because that has to be a real hard thing to admit you are going to Duke to your buddies
thought this was an interesting letter becauseit isn't too cut-and-dry
jusnice wrote:I grew up in a very diverse town in NJ. The first town to voluntarily de-segregate their school systems prior to Brown vs. the Board of Ed. It was always interesting to me the treatment that intelligent / academically focused black kids would receive from their peers who were not. They were frequent targets of abuse and we often told that they were white. In college, I studied African American and Slave History extensively. One of my best professor, Reginald Butler (whose son is Butterfly from Digable Planets), would often relate stories of having to hide his school books in his pants and shirts while he walked home to avoid being brutalized by the brothers on the street. I've done a lot of research on this matter and it is a shame that people like Rose continue to reinforce this image that being intelligent, being a good student, and having a supporting family structure is somehow not black. I've spent some time with Grant Hill whil at the University of Virginia (had the pleasure of him dunking on me repeatedly during a pick up game one summer) and he should be viewed as a role model to young black men and women, not a Uncle Tom. It is a shameful paradox that many people of African American descent continue to reinforce the notion that it is somehow not "black" to be like Grant. I got goosebumps when reading his article and can only hope that it gets some play among the younger generation who may be dealing with the same pressure I witnessed when I was a kid.
good stuff, thanks.
newyorknewyork wrote:If you watched the documentary though you can tell that Rose was speaking about his viewpoint as freshman in college. It was basically what he sold himself on in order to try to get a mental edge when facing Duke, one of the elite teams, and his main comp Hill. Plus the fact that he was admittedly jealous of Hill.There was no need for all of this based on the view point of an immature Rose over 10 yrs ago. But I could see the good a statement like this from Hill could do since it promotes good family structure.
The viewpoint that Rose had was important, missed that from just reading the Hill response.
I didn't see the documentary and don't know what it's about.
If Rose is smart and did indeed produce the whole thing, why wouldn't he have collaborated some with Hill and have some sort of Reflection moment with Grant? Or perhaps that did happen. If not, why not?
I should have guessed there was something regrettable in the documentary when I received a Twitter apology from Jalen before its premiere. I am aware Jalen has gone to some length to explain his remarks about my family in numerous interviews, so I believe he has some admiration for them….
If Jalen were indeed a grownup and serious about his intentions, he would have called Hill personally instead of sending a Twitter apology and doing some interviews from afar. Seems lacking from Jalen.
newyorknewyork wrote:If you watched the documentary though you can tell that Rose was speaking about his viewpoint as freshman in college. It was basically what he sold himself on in order to try to get a mental edge when facing Duke, one of the elite teams, and his main comp Hill. Plus the fact that he was admittedly jealous of Hill.There was no need for all of this based on the view point of an immature Rose over 10 yrs ago. But I could see the good a statement like this from Hill could do since it promotes good family structure.
[url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=6224395"]this video interview[/url] supports a lot of what you said, but Jalen also said Duke only goes after affluent kids
