When we think about the NBA in early June each year, most of us immediately picture a champion etching their names into the record books while hoisting the Larry O’Brien Trophy after a tightly contested NBA Finals.
Not this year.
The year 2020 has given us COVID-19, and it has taken Kobe. We’ve experienced more innocent lives murdered at the hands of bigotry, and yet 2020 is seeing a powerful societal shift demanding change.
“Social distancing” has replaced the handshake as a form of respect; the mask has become the functional accessory of the year; voices from every walk of life are rising up in unity for black lives; and all while the country hurtles toward a November election that may itself prove to be unparalleled.
The Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury are introducing Don’t Sleep on Basketball, a content series dedicated to documenting the historic times we are living in through the unexpected aperture of the game, right up to the first Suns game with fans in the stands. Basketball sits at the unique intersection of culture, entertainment, and sport; a perfect position for the Suns/Mercury organization to serve as participant, voyeur and storyteller.
The dynamic initiative will be activated across multiple platforms, including FOX Sports Arizona, Suns and Mercury social channels, YouTube, and editorially on Suns.com.
Over the first two episodes we’ll share the voices from the front lines of the pandemic and those rising up for social justice and equality. We’ll explore the new norms of basketball, on and off the court as the Suns and Mercury prepare for the return to play in 2020. New storylines will pop up week-to-week.
If 2020 has proven anything, it’s to expect the unexpected.