Dan Hurley’s ‘head-butt’ showed Black coaches aren’t allowed to do what white coaches do

The UConn-Duke crippled connected Sunday nighttime was 1 for nan ages. A last-second crippled victor from freshman Braylon Mullins took down nan top-seeded Blue Devils, who astatine 1 constituent had led by 19 points. It is simply a infinitesimal that will beryllium replayed complete and complete for years to come.

However, thing unusual happened aft Mullins’s shot. UConn’s caput coach Dan Hurley approached referee Roger Ayers and touched foreheads pinch nan official while glaring into his eyes. It wasn’t rather nan “head-butt” immoderate called it connected societal media but it was an eye-catching scene. For his part, Ayers told ESPN nan incident was “absolutely nothing” but it wouldn’t person been different for Hurley to beryllium fixed a method foul, which would person fixed Duke free throws and a chance to triumph nan crippled pinch 0.4 seconds left.

This wasn’t Hurley’s first brushwood pinch controversy. Earlier this month, he was fined for “unsportsmanlike conduct” aft confronting an charismatic astatine a crippled against Marquette. In 2025, he taunted Creighton fans aft a UConn victory. Later that season, aft UConn were beaten by Florida successful nan NCAA Tournament, he approached Baylor players arsenic they prepared for their crippled and told them: “I dream [the referees] don’t [expletive] you for illustration they effed us”.

Hurley is mostly forgiven for each this. He is called “passionate”, “eccentric” aliases “fiery”.

There are different examples retired there. Rick Pitino is simply a superb coach but his profession would person been sunk agelong agone if he was Black. The astir salient of his missteps came from his clip astatine Louisville wherever his erstwhile adjunct coach, Andre McGee, was accused of paying for escorts to portion and person activity pinch players and recruits. McGee was put connected probation by nan NCAA and his entreaty failed. Pitino was ne'er accused of being progressive successful nan strategy but the NCAA admonished him for “failing successful his work to show nan activities of [McGee]”. Louisville subsequently fired him but alternatively than ending his profession he is now coaching different salient program, St John’s. A Black coach successful that situation? He ne'er would person coached a awesome squad again.

The logic is that nan rules are different for Black group successful each facet of society. And that goes each nan measurement to nan top.

Barack Obama had to beryllium cleanable to go president of nan United States: an Ivy League eduction astatine Columbia and Harvard, wherever he became nan first Black president of nan Harvard Law Review. One wife, 2 daughters pinch that aforesaid wife, and zero scandals.

Donald Trump, connected nan different hand, was recovered blameworthy of each 34 counts of falsifying business records successful a criminal hush-money strategy to power nan result of nan 2016 election. But wait, there’s more. In 2023, a assemblage recovered Trump liable for sexually assaulting E Jean Carroll successful a New York section shop dressing room successful nan 1990s. In fact, much than 20 women have accused Trump of intersexual misconduct, each of which he has denied.

That’s a database that would person kept a Black personification from moreover being considered arsenic president of McDonald’s, fto unsocial president of nan United States. The fallout for Trump? He’s been elected president twice.

• Etan Thomas played successful nan NBA from 2000 done 2011. He is simply a published author, podcaster, poet, activistic and motivational speaker.