Quibi, a recently launched subscription-based streaming platform, has released its trailer for the docuseries Blackballed.
Blackballed is a powerful series that examines the cultural context of race in America through the lens of NBA owner Donald Sterling’s expulsion from the league. The series highlights the five days during the 2014 NBA playoffs, when Doc Rivers, Chris Paul, DeAndre Jordan, and the Los Angeles Clippers protested the team’s owner Sterling.
Sterling was recorded by his then-girlfriend V. Stiviano saying he didn’t want her bringing black people to Clippers games, including former Lakers guard Magic Johnson. At the time, the Clippers were a team with mostly African American players.
“This powerful story, which portrays a defining moment in the history of the NBA, shines a spotlight on a cultural divide that has affected our country for decades,” Will Packer, executive producer of the series, said in a statement. “We are very excited that Blackballed will be available to audiences on Quibi, one of the most innovative entertainment content platforms in the industry.”
After hearing the recording themselves, players and coaches led an unprecedented movement to hold the league accountable including threatening to boycott the rest of the season.
The docuseries features interviews from Los Angeles Clippers players Paul, Jordan, and JJ Redick, as well as Clippers head coach Rivers, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, sportswriter Jemele Hill, and others.
League commissioner Silver was on the job for less than three months before being forced into the spotlight. Sliver, knowing that a less than stellar punishment could ruin the league, slapped Sterling with a lifetime ban from the NBA and forced him to sell the team.
Steve Ballmer, a former Microsoft executive and CEO, bought the team from Sterling for $2 billion.
Packer, an African American producer whose movies include Ride Along 2, No Good Deed, and Think Like a Man Too, produced the series. Blackballed was picked up by Quibi last November.
Quibi is a short-form mobile video platform headquartered in Los Angeles and launched in April.