Earlier this week, LeBron James had a few words for Knicks President Phil Jackson, after he referred to James’ business partners as his “posse.” The situation sparked debate about whether or not the word had a negative connotation. Many believed it was just a word Jackson may have been accustomed to using, while others believed it was flat out racist.
The Detroit Pistons coach, Stan Van Gundy, who has been very vocal about racism within the presidential election, weighed in on Jacksons’ comments.
“I’m going to be perfectly honest here, I’ve used that word before, OK,” Van Gundy said, “and when that all came out I had to ask myself, have I ever used that word before with a white player, and the answer is no. So, I think, look, you have to be aware of the language and you have to be aware a little bit of your own biases of you’re going to overcome the, and so I took that seriously.”
“And so I think at the time where you’re going to call out other people on attitudes, I think you need to be willing to look in the mirror and call yourself out,” he continued. “I don’t think I’ve used that term in a long, long, long time, but I think going back to my days as an assistant when I was younger I know in the past I have used that term. I’m just being honest and it’s not right.”
What are your thoughts on the term? Have you ever used the word?
