Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Chris Paul will produce a docuseries focused on Historically Black Colleges and Universities and the recruiting struggles their basketball programs go through, according to the NY Daily News.
Paul’s series will dive into the way HBCUs are unable to recruit high school prospects the way other universities and Blue Bloods.
Very few NBA players attended HBCUs. According to the Daily News, Philadelphia 76ers forward Kyle O’Quinn, who attended Norfolk State, and Houston Rockets forward Robert Covington, who attended Tennessee State, are the only two active players to have done so.
“HBCUs historically have been at a competitive disadvantage with their basketball programs facing many challenges with funding, recruitment, mis-perceptions, and exposure,” Paul said in a statement to the Daily News.
Some elite high school players have been vocal about HBCUs over the past year, including Josh Christopher and Makur Maker, who both visited Howard. Christopher committed to Arizona State while Maker has declared for the NBA Draft but is reportedly considering going to college.
Prominent Class of 2023 player Mikey Williams has posted to social media that he’s considering an HBCU.
Among chief challenges in getting athletes to have legitimate interest, Howard coach Kenny Blakeney told The Athletic in June, is the sports budget. The basketball gym and other facilities are not in pristine shape like traditional powerhouses. The recruiting budget is minuscule in comparison to other universities.
Howard’s recruiting budget for all men’s sports teams in 2018 was a touch below $164,000, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Duke’s was $1.8 million. ASU, Christopher’s school, was about $1.1 million.
Paul’s docuseries, which was reported on during a time in which there has been more than a month of protests spurned by the deaths of George Floyd and others at the hands of police, will take a look at the recruiting grind HBCUs go through and why athletes more often than not choose predominantly white schools.
“With the current racial awakening in our country prompting young athletes to look at where they play, it’s now more important than ever to shine a light on HBCUs and showcase their value in sports and society,” Paul said.
