For decades, there has been a stubborn stereotype in basketball that white players simply lack game for whatever reason. Although Nikola Jokić, a white man, has won three of the last four NBA regular season MVPs, that misperception continues to linger.
Whether it is because of legitimate racism or more of a mischievous attitude, it can result in some moments that offer a bit of levity in our racially divided society.
Gordon Hayward announced his retirement from the NBA about a week ago after 14 seasons in the league. Although he was riddled with injuries at times, he was an excellent shooter who could also occasionally serve as a secondary playmaker.
While on “The Dan Le Batard Show,” Hayward recalled a time when Metta Sandiford-Artest hilariously implored late Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant for the basketball because Hayward, a white man, was guarding Sandiford-Artest.
"When we played the Lakers one of the years and they had Ron Artest… he looks at me and then looks back at Kobe and he's like 'Hey Kob, just throw me the ball in the post man. Look who's guarding me. I've got Bieber guarding me.'" @gordonhayward tells an incredible story… pic.twitter.com/pH05TFlUje
— Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (@LeBatardShow) August 7, 2024
“For whatever reason, when you see the white guy guarding you, it’s like ‘Let’s iso him and go at him’. And so, you gotta hope that you can stop that first time, or else they’re just going to keep going at you every single time.”
“I wasn’t the worst defender on the team, but for whatever reason, check in the game – ‘We’re going right at him’… I’m telling you, there’s just some stereotype, people’s eyes light up. I remember, this probably didn’t necessarily have to do with the fact that I was white, but maybe my face and hair and everything.”
“We played the Lakers, I think it was preseason, and they had Ron Artest. I checked in the game & he looks at me and then looks back at Kobe. And he’s like, ‘Hey Kob, just throw me the ball in the post, man. Look who’s guarding me. I’ve got [Justin] Bieber guarding me’. And sure enough, he just posted me up. I had no chance guarding him. At that point, what am I going to say to Ron Artest?”
Sandiford-Artest wasn’t just one of the NBA’s great defenders back in the day. He was one of those rare players who could lock down a star player defensively and also score a consistent 15-20 points on the other end.
While his game was in decline when he came to the Lakers in 2009, he had enough left in the tank to play a key role in the team defeating the Boston Celtics to win the world championship. In doing so, he became a beloved member of the Los Angeles-area community, and he did a lot to help the less fortunate, including encouraging people to seek help for mental health issues if needed.