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Cleveland Cavaliers‘ star forward LeBron James and New York Knicks' president Phil Jackson recently made a lot of headlines after a back-and-forth ensued stemming from a controversial comment made by the latter.
The 71-year-old front office executive gave a statement about James and his management team referring to them as a “posse” which left the four-time MVP with a bad taste in the mouth, going as far as to say the comment was racially charged.
Before his team's game against the Knicks on Wednesday night, Detroit Pistons‘ head coach Stan Van Gundy gave his thoughts on the issue between the two. He admitted to having used the word before but never to address or before a white person.
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“It makes you all think. I think we’ve all got to become aware of our language and attitudes. I’m going to be perfectly honest here. I’ve used that word before. OK. When all that came out, I had to ask myself: Have I ever used that word before with a white player? The answer is no.”
“You have to be aware of your own biases if you want to overcome them. I took that seriously. I understand why it’s offensive. I’ve never used that word publicly, but I have used it in talking to people I know. It has never been in conjunction with a white player.”
“At the time you’re going to call out other people on attitudes, you have to be willing to look in the mirror and call yourself out.”
Van Gundy may have come out clean with his comments but it also serves a message to every person to be mindful with their choice of words. If Jackson did it on purpose or not is anybody's guess at this point, but one has to wonder why an apology from him has not been made yet if he did not intentionally take a shot at James and his management team.
