How American Basketball Change America Culture, Research Paper Example

Perhaps the most important contribution of basketball to American culture has been raising the profile and socio-economic contribution of African Americans in sports. 61% of NCAA Division 1 college basketball and 80% of NBA players are black (Walters). One may argue that other sports have also produced African American icons and it is indeed true but at the same time none of the sports has produced as many familiar names as basketball. One can count the African American sports icons in other sports on fingers such as Mohammed Ali in boxing, Carl Lewis in track and field, O.J. Simpson in American football but the numbers pale in comparison to those in basketball. Well known African American basketball legends include Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Tim Duncan, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Charles Barkley.

Basketball has also promoted popular American culture abroad. Michael Jordan was arguably the first American sportsman with wide global appeal and his popularity also gave unprecedented promotion to Chicago Bulls. Michael Jordan showed how a sportsman can become a global brand through his partnership with Nike and in doing so, started a trend of long term commercial partnerships between sportsmen and Corporate America. Nike was a struggling shoe company in the mid-1980s and its partnership with Michael Jordan is credited with reversing the company’s fortunes (LiveStrong). Thus, basketball has an important contribution towards commercialization of sports.

Like NFL, NBA games broadcasts have also become one of America’s most popular pastimes. Though college basketball is not as feverously followed as college football, NBA rivals and probably exceeds NFL in popularity and following. NBA’s current stars are also more widelyknown outside America as compared to NFL and MLB stars such as Lebron James and Kobe Bryant. It is expected that out of all popular American sports, basketball will be the one to benefit most from globalization, judging from the progress being made in China.

References

LiveStrong. (n.d.). The Effects of the Game of Basketball on America. Retrieved July 18, 2011, from http://www.livestrong.com/article/343861-the-effects-of-the-game-of-basketball-on-america/

Walters. (n.d.). Basketball: The Black Game. Retrieved July 18, 2011, from http://xroads.virginia.edu/~class/am483_97/projects/walters/mjbball.html