With the 8th pick in the Basketball Feelings Feelings Draft, Dishes & Dimes selects... CONTEMPT

Dishes & Dimes is an all women NBA podcast of which I am a very lucky and proud to be a part of. We started it because despite the volume of basketball podcasts out there, we didn’t hear ourselves in any of them. Our only thing in common when we started is we were Raptors fans to a detrimental degree. To be totally honest, we started the year on a very big roll — initial response and support for the podcast was beyond what we’d expected; we had interest and plans that were getting quickly realized; and we all just really liked each other. So it’s been a bit of an about face in terms of that momentum but what’s stuck is how important this group of women is and the conversation, observations and ongoing dialogue that’s come from them. When I think about them, one night I keep coming back to is about a week before the pandemic hit we were all invited to a screening of Life Without Basketball. In the dark of the theatre, our complimentary popcorns on our laps, I kept hearing Sidra laugh, or caught light glancing off Yasmin and Kelsea’s glasses in the dark. I just felt, very strongly, their presence. It shot through me. That and the movie and I cried a lot, but it was more the feeling of being in something and knowing you are there at that rare time you can feel it start to mean something, become what it is. Also they are funny and tough as hell.

Dishes & Dimes is Imman, Sandie, Yasmin, Noor, Sidra, Kelsea, Sarah and me.

Sidra: The second definition, “disregard for something that should be taken into account”. I don’t know how serious you guys want to get but we could mention the severity of speaking up and supporting Black athletes that we profit from. Like big names staying silent. But I also don’t know how much Katie would want to use that. [Commissioner’s note: I would love to use it. There’s no excuse to be silent.]

Imman: Yeah I think so.

Yasmin: I was thinking the same.

Imman: I was going to write contempt towards NBA statements that have come out.

Sidra: I love that actually. Did any team even have a good one?

Imman: When we know the league stamped out peaceful protests by not allowing players to kneel.

Sidra: Cuz I thought the Raptors was hot trash. Didn’t Adam Silver even say they weren’t going to be ALLOWED to kneel?

Imman: Good or bad, they put it into the CBA that players can’t kneel. So they don’t get to pretend to support the cause now.

Sarah: The Raptors statement was terrible. I didn’t read any others.

Sidra: Damn man.

Sarah: I agree with having contempt for all of the above. I also feel like maybe it could be two-fold; I personally see disregard for safety.

Sidra: Great point Sarah.

Sarah: In the decision to return to play on the day Florida has seen record number of new cases of COVID-19.

Sidra: So we can use contempt for Black athletes regarding their health and safety and that kind of includes both issues. What do you guys think?

Sarah: I like it.

Yasmin: We have room for both! I’m going to quote Oxford Dictionary like it’s the introduction to a 7th grade essay: “The feeling that a person or thing is beneath consideration, worthless, or deserving scorn.”

Noor: Someone like me would need that.

Yasmin: Befitting of the current sociopolitical climate.

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Yasmin: What’s the first thing you guys think of when you hear “contempt”? I think of contempt of court, which is the disrespect of a court setting.

Sarah: Contempt in real life is much stronger than contempt of court IMO. It’s disgust, really.

Kelsea: Disgust that they don’t speak anything other than copy and paste statements about the current racial climate despite profiting off predominantly Black men.

Yasmin: It’s like contempt for their players. Who, despite the fame and money, are essential employees to billionaire owners.

Sidra: First thing I think of when I hear contempt is the sadness I feel knowing that as a league, the NBA has decided that monetary gains are more important than the voices, safety and lives of Black athletes.

Kelsea: Disgust that no one has renounced Kendrick Nunn and that Shams is silent on Black issues while also pushing the Derrick Rose redemption arc.

Noor: Yeah, I feel disgust towards the season reopening for financial gain that overlooks health and safety.

Imman: I was thinking in terms of the NBA’s hypocrisy. Mahmoud Abdul Rauf to Donald Sterling to modern day. They pretend they care but they don’t, and that’s what I’d feel contempt for.

Kelsea: How long they let Donald Sterling own a team.

Sandie: I feel disgust that owners like Dolan can opt out of supporting the players in tangible ways regarding racial justice.

Kelsea: And it took his mistress secretly recording a conversation for something to happen. That their activism is performative.

Imman: Morey-China was less than a year ago.

Kelsea: Holy shit it was.

That they don’t step in and do anything regarding NCAA.

Yasmin: The way they were dunking on capitalism and vilifying silent GMs and owners was telling.

Kelsea: That the fan/part owner who did something to Kyle [Lowry] in GS is allowed back in the arena.

Sidra: Once again disregard for their safety and them having a comfortable work environment.

Kelsea: Multiple players speaking out about Utah fans and nothing done about it.

Yasmin: This is firing me UP LOL

Kelsea: SAME. I’m sitting here watching Top Chef like, “You know what? FUCK THE NBA".

Sarah: I have had a lot of wine tonight so it may get messy.

Sidra: We’re here for it.

Yasmin: I miss those Raptors though. What’s the opposite of contempt? Flattery? Admiration? Because that.

Sarah: That’s the thing. I do miss the NBA. I just can’t endorse return to play right now. Where’s the plan?

Yasmin: At all.

Daily testing and social distancing, according to Silver.

Sarah: Are we just supposed to trust Adam Silver? But how is that going to work, we don’t even fully understand the virus. So, one player tests positive and he goes into quarantine for xx days, and they test everybody else every day. What happens if they end up 4 players [sick] on a team or more, what if they’re top rotation guys? What if this happens to several teams? I don’t know. It seems quite premature. What if somebody ends up in hospital on a ventilator or dies? What’s the plan for family members? Are they allowed to leave Disney for extracurriculars in Orlando? So many questions. I’ll stop.

Sidra: Also the world not knowing the effects of coronavirus after they get it. I’ve heard a lot of stories of people losing lung capacity. If there is even a chance of that happening to an athlete his entire career will be affected. Is the NBA ready to sacrifice their players like that? Are they not even allowed to see their families until the season is over?!

Yasmin: Yes, they seem to have accepted any risk.

Sarah: I’ve heard that families will be able to come at some point. So the Devil’s Advocate in me says this, we are likely going to be living with this for a few years. Even if a safe/effective vaccine is discovered, widespread, population-wide vaccination will take years because of insufficient manufacturing capacity, etc. So we do have to figure out how to live with some level of risk. The question is what level of risk and when do we know enough to even try to measure what that risk is? For the NBA, it feels pretty premature to be making that call, and obviously very profit-driven.

Kelsea: So should we copy and paste this conversation and send it to her?

Yasmin: Yeah that’s the plan. Anyone wanna add more thoughts?

Kelsea: I feel like
If I add anymore
I won’t want to watch basketball ever again

Sarah: She’s going to edit it right? Please say yes.

Kelsea: Yeah she’s going to put her Katie magic on it.

Sidra: Hey Katie sorry in advance.