Drafting Order
The NFL Hockey Draft as a Reflection of Our World
What does Seth Jones’ NHL trade position say about America? No one certainly guaranteed this 18 year old defenseman from the Portland Winterhawks a number one draft position, but the overall consensus was that he would be exactly that in the draft. And now, at number four in the draft that took place on June 30, Seth has become somewhat of a talking point for many throughout the sports world, and certainly not just the professional hockey world. Seth was drafted by the Nashville Predators but only he and his family truly know how the excitement, or disappointment, feels as the realization of a goal of becoming a professional hockey player comes true.
You see, Seth is a defenseman of first rate calibar who just happens to be an African-American hockey player. Some in the sports world say he dropped because he is 18 and unproven. Others say he dropped because he is a defenseman and it’s much easier to take chances on a forward when it comes to the #1 spot in the draft. While there are those that say it takes a full two or three years for a defenseman to really make an impact at their position and the first three teams just couldn’t wait that long. Others question his drive and competiveness. And then there are others who say out loud what many are simply asking inside their heads: “Did Seth Jones drop in draft status because of his race?” Seth was still the first African-American drafted in the top five but is that enough to erase the doubts?
Sports should have a simple focus on talent and nothing else. Removing the human element of bias should be fundamental in making sure that a team has the absolute best in talent to win as much as possible. Often, this is exactly as it should be when it comes to drafts thoughtout the sports world. But there are still holdover sports in which the world, in general, is shocked by the talents of anyone beyond the “normal” expected scope of talent. We see this in golf, hockey and even soccer, to name a few, as we look at the active rosters of teams throughout the professional sports world. Even as recently as April of this year, Tyler Kepner of the New York Times wrote an article on “Baseball’s Racial Makeup: Looking in to the Decline of African-American Players.” Will baseball become the next sport in which we are surprised that someone of color has outstanding talent?
There is no doubt that Seth has extraordinary talent in the position he plays and the sport he has chosen. Virtually all hockey writers agree about his talent level, accomplished skills and the potential he brings to Nashville in their goal to achieve a Stanley cup. And there are many experts who predicted Seth to achieve number one draft status this past Sunday. So what happened? We’ll never quite know why the Colorado Avalache, the Florida Panthers and the Tampa Bay Lightning passed on his talents. We’ll certainly know why they picked who they did through the use of press releases and spin. The three picks chosen ahead of Seth are most assuredly excellent talents in their own right and they too have been lost in the shuffle of this debate.
Seth has added a mission to his pursuit of being the best and helping a team win a Stanley Cup. Now he is on a mission to prove to those other three teams that they made the wrong choice and to confirm to the Nashville Predators that they made a superb selection. Even Seth realizes the challenge on his hands from a talent level as he was quoted in a Yahoo Sports article by Nicholas J. Cotsonika as saying “People say it takes time for defensemen to really grow in the league, a couple years at least,” Jones said. “Hopefully I can prove that theory wrong.” But, in this instance, it isn’t just about talent, it’s about proving that his talent overarches old time biases against people of color in certain parts of the sports world.
And so Seth, at the young age of 18, has become an icon for what may be wrong in the sports world as opposed to being an icon for his talent and what he has achieved in hockey. No matter whether Seth was chosen as #1 or #4, he was going to be the top headline today in the sports world. That headline just as easily could have read “Seth Jones’ becomes the NHL’s first African-American #1 Draft Pick” and with such another first would have been marked off the list for those in the African-American community. It would be obtuse to suggest that “marking items off a list” is a goal of anyone in the African-American community. However there is no doubt that pride can result from the realization of someone in the community achieving a lifetime goal based solely on talent, skill and drive. This can be said for any area of life whether it be sports, politics or the business world.
Before you form your opinions about how far we have progressed in America and that being drafted fourth in any draft is an honor, be sure to go read the message boards on any article associated with this particular topic. You will see a great deal of old-fashioned bias, racism and putdowns from people who hide in old world notions behind new world usernames. Regardless, of how they hide behind those usernames, what they speak is how they feel inside and it’s a scary thing that, in 2013, we still have people so afraid of people’s skin color or religion. The NHL draft yesterday is just a blip on the radar that includes millenia of biased humans but, if nothing else, it helps us keep this topic top of mind, at least until we don’t have to anymore.
Congratulations to Seth and good luck in what will be a long and succesful hockey career.
