More than a Ball Player: The David West Interview

More than a Ball Player:  The David West InterviewbyDavid Leonard | NewBlackMan
Oneof the more thoughtful and socially active professional athletes, David West ,a forward for the NBA's Indiana Pacers talked with NewBlackMan regular contributor David Leonard, about the current NBA season, the residue of the NBAlockout, the stereotypes of NBA players and what he's reading these days.
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DJL– How has the compressed season been physically and mentally?
DW:The games are just coming.  Itbecomes a grind.  4 games in 5nights.  12 games in 15 nights.  This is physically taxing.  There have been injuries around theNBA.  You do what you can to getyour body prepared but sometimes the body won't respond.  It is not going to get better.
DJL: How does the compressed season impact family
DW: Families are rarely taken into account in aregular season and that is even more of an issue this season.  There is really no time.  Guys make sacrifices in a normal seasonand that is even greater right now. There is less time to do anything outside of practice and games.
DJL: Describe your assessment of lockout looking backin terms of relationship between players and owners, how race played out
DW: I went to a few meetings and there was some cryptic language that wasused.  I was offended by the ideawe may not understand certain things. Beyond that, when you are dealing with a certain amount of money inbusiness, there has to be a middle and level ground.  In the media, we were portrayed as not knowing anything, asgreedy and selfish – to just shut up and play basketball.  We expected that. 
DJL: It seems that one of the struggles was battlingthe caricature of today's NBA player
DW: Every guy doesn't have the machine behindthem.  As an individual, it is hardto fight the assumptions made about us. When I first entered the league, people were like "David, what are youtalking about" because I wasn't talking about basketball and I wasn't talkingabout mundane things that people expected from me.  That puts into perspective what people expect of you; peopledon't expect athletes to have anything to offer other than being a source forentertainment.  The mind is seen as2nd or 3rd rate. So often the conversation starts and ends with sports.  You find yourself boxed in.  I have been labeled as stand-offishbecause when people engage me they often just want to talk about basketball,and that is not what I always want to talk about.  Most guys deal with it and just walk around in a bubblebecause there is no space for original thoughts from athletes withinsports.  
DJL: What are your passions, what drives you?
DW: I am passionate about knowing more. Every day I wake up, I want to learn something new.  I read a lot on African Americanhistory, African history, and history in general.  I love to read; I want to be engaged with what is going onsocially.   I love music, thelanguage that is inside the music, what guys are trying to say, especially withhip-hop.  It doesn't have to be the"conscious rap."  All rappers areconscious because they have the wherewithal and freedom to say something.  Regardless of what you hear, even themost childlike rapper or those who rap at the highest level, there is a messagethere.  I like to speak to youngpeople; I don't like to box myself in just because I have been successful as anathlete. 
DJL: You mentioned that you like to read, what areyou reading right now
DW: Right now, I am reading Cheikh Anta Diop's Pre-colonialBlack Africa.  I think it isimportant to know that we in the African American community have a historybefore America.  As an athlete whatwe do is so routine, so there is so much time for the mind, time to engage yourbrain and your thought process. That is why I read. That is why I am who I am; that is why I do what Ido.  People who have power,read.  People who have power to beengaged and who can control their own movements, read.  If you don't read and if you don't havethe ability to think critically, people are going to dictate what you do forthe rest of your life.  They aregoing move you how they want to move you.
DJL: While you love basketball, it doesn't seem todefine you.  Talk about that
DW: It can't because the average career is 3.5 or 4 years.  A few guys are going to play 12-15 plusyears but not most.  At the end ofthe day, when you retire you are 32 or 38, there is a lot of life left.  You have to start preparing for yourlife after the NBA as soon as you enter the league.  It is not going to be there forever.   That is why you can't let thislife consume you; you can't let the NBA be the end all, be all, of who you areas a person.   
DJL: Since we connected via twitter, I am curious howdoes twitter fit into your efforts to expand your reach and connection. 
DW: I read your material from Professor Neal.  When I became twitter literate, I foundthat the people that I wanted to follow were professors and educators, people Ididn't know.  I follow a lot ofHistory and Africana professors, cultural critics, and news organizations,because that it is what I am interested in. Whether it be from Professor Neal'sposts, Left of Black or a professor who posts questions via twitter about thesubject matter within their classroom. I also like the immediacy of the news asit comes in through twitter.
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David J. Leonard is Associate Professor in the Department of CriticalCulture, Gender and Race Studies at Washington State University, Pullman. Hehas written on sport, video games, film, and social movements, appearing inboth popular and academic mediums. His work explores the political economy ofpopular culture, examining the interplay between racism, state violence, andpopular representations through contextual, textual, and subtextualanalysis.  Leonard's latest book After Artest: Race and the Assault on Blackness will bepublished by SUNY Press in May of 2012.