Why is the Black Community so Protective of Shedeur Sanders?

What this episode is about

The discussion centers on the intense scrutiny and unwavering support surrounding Shedeur Sanders within the Black community, highlighting the polarized opinions about his character and performance that often stray beyond football-related critiques. The conversation explores why he has become a symbolic figure for the community, examining the extremes of both admiration and criticism he receives.

Key takeaways

• Shadur's polarizing fandom reflects a yearning for representation in a sport often devoid of diverse narratives.
• Kendrick Perkins' claim of Shadur as the 'most powerful black man since 2009' oversimplifies influence; popularity isn't power.
• Extreme opinions on Shadur expose the struggle between community pride and objective critique in black sports discourse.
• Labeling dissenters as 'denigrators' shows how tightly woven identity and performance can complicate rational dialogue.
• In a world of buttressed egos, Shadur's blend of arrogance and humility is a rare gem — not a threat.

Who speaks in this episode?

• Jemele Hill (Host) · 21 min speaking
• Kendrick Perkins (Guest) · 1 min speaking

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 5:00: Shador Sanders, Kendrick Perkins, ESPN, NBA
2. 5:00 – 10:00: Angel Reese, Shador Sanders, Muhammad Ali, Kendrick Perkins
3. 10:00 – 15:00: Shador Sanders, Jackson Dart, Pat Mahomes
4. 15:00 – 20:00: Shador Sanders, Angel Reese, JFK Jr., Celine Dion
5. 20:00 – 24:26: Angel Reese, O. J. Simpson, Shador Sanders, Candace Parker

Notable quotes from "Why is the Black Community so Protective of Shedeur Sanders?"

• By too extreme. And this is what I mean by that definition of Shadur Sanders truther. Here is Kendrick Perkins, NBA analyst on ESPN talking about Shadur Sanders recently.

  about Kendrick Perkins · at 1:42

• Shadur Sanders is the most powerful black man in sports and the most powerful black man since 2009.

  about Shador Sanders · at 3:18

• Happens. And this is this speaks to and I'm glad you brought up Angel Reese because Angel Reese is actually a very similar comparison to Shadurus Sanders in some ways. And I'm going to tell you why in a minute. But here's the thing.

  about Angel Reese · at 6:30

• Because and I'm I'm glad you brought this up. Okay. So Pat Mahomes to me has a lot of power in the league. And the reason that Pat Mahomes has a lot of power because I promise you if something.

  about Pat Mahomes · at 9:57

• Welcomed that [clears throat] will never happen with black athletes. Wouldn't happen. Jackson Dart is a case point example. Do you know that if I mean got some jewelry, don't…

  about Jackson Dart · at 11:20

• Like JFK is the model for the Boomer generation. Dion is kind of that for my generation of black men being that Dion is JFK.

  about Celine Dion · at 16:17

• But OJ Simpson was a symbol for a lot of black people when he was on trial for the murder of his ex-wife and her friend for Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. We knew as a community that OJ.

  about O. J. Simpson · at 20:38

• Is not seen as a complete, as being complete traitors to the race. Like I defended some of Candace Parker's comments about Angel Reese. I'm like she would know she played in the league was one of the best players of all time.

  about Candace Parker · at 22:05

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Shador Sanders — Person · Core topic · 17 mentions · first at 0:00
  He is the focal point of the episode’s debate about extreme fandom, media narratives, and how Black communities symbolically invest in certain athletes.
• Kendrick Perkins — Person · Referenced commentator · 2 mentions · first at 1:48
  His on-air statement is presented as an example of the 'extreme' discourse, claiming Sanders is the most powerful Black man since Obama’s election.
• Angel Reese — Person · Referenced comparison · 10 mentions · first at 6:08
  Used as a parallel case to explain protective cultural dynamics—particularly how Black women rally around a prominent athlete amid criticism and body/behavior policing.
• Celine Dion — Person · Referenced father figure in analogy · 2 mentions · first at 16:19
  Central to the JFK Jr. analogy: 'Dion' (Deion Sanders) is framed as the legendary father whose cultural aura spills over to his son.
• JFK Jr. — Person · Referenced analogy · 3 mentions · first at 15:51
  A friend’s analogy compares Sanders’ cultural reception to JFK Jr.—a son inheriting symbolic reverence from a legendary father figure.
  Legendary father who captured the imagination of a generation. This is why he's comparing Shadur Sanders to JFK Jr.
• O. J. Simpson — Person · Referenced historical example · 2 mentions · first at 20:28
  Used to explain how communities can elevate a figure symbolically for broader systemic issues (criminal justice), separate from the individual’s character.
• Pat Mahomes — Person · Referenced example · 1 mention · first at 10:06
  Cited as a contemporary example of real league-level influence/power (hypothetical rule changes if he were injured).
• Candace Parker — Person · Referenced expert/critic · 1 mention · first at 22:14
  Presented as a credible basketball authority whose fair critiques of Angel Reese were treated as betrayal, illustrating irrational protectionism.
• Jackson Dart — Person · Referenced example · 2 mentions · first at 11:23
  Used to contrast how confidence and flashy presentation are interpreted differently for white vs Black athletes (jewelry/Cuban link example).
• Muhammad Ali — Person · Referenced misquote target · 2 mentions · first at 6:08
  Mentioned only in the context of a debunked, bot-generated fake quote claiming the speaker compared Angel Reese to Ali.
  Jamal Hill, you put Angel Reese and Muhammad Ali in the same breath. You are saying something about a young black man. Wow. Time, let me educate you real fast because this has come up many.
• Michael Jordan — Person · Referenced misquote target · 1 mention · first at 7:29
  Appears as another example of a fabricated quote attributed to the speaker about Angel Reese ('next Michael Jordan').
  One that circulated that I supposedly said was me saying that she was the next Michael Jordan. I never said that either. So, y'all can time out with the dumb [ __ ] Get more the media literate.

Companies & orgs

• ESPN — Company · Referenced media platform · 1 mention · first at 1:48
  Identified as the platform where Kendrick Perkins made the extreme claim, highlighting how sports media amplifies narratives.
  By too extreme. And this is what I mean by that definition of Shadur Sanders truther. Here is Kendrick Perkins, NBA analyst on ESPN talking about Shadur Sanders recently.
• NBA — Company · Referenced league context · 1 mention · first at 1:48
  Mentioned to situate Kendrick Perkins’ role as an 'NBA analyst' and to establish his sports-media authority.
  By too extreme. And this is what I mean by that definition of Shadur Sanders truther. Here is Kendrick Perkins, NBA analyst on ESPN talking about Shadur Sanders recently.

Full transcript with timestamps

0:00 The conversation around Shadur is exhausting because it's too extreme on both sides. You have people who are, I think, attacking Shadura's character unnecessarily about things that have nothing to do with football with a presumptuousness about his body language and how he acts and what he says. Like, they just doing the most, the absolute most. And it's annoying. On the other side of that, and I picked this up on threads because there was somebody on threads that called some of the Shadur Sanders fan, this is not every fan, but called some of them Shadur Sanders truthers. And I was like, "Oh my god, that is the perfect example." There's nothing wrong with rooting for Shadur Sanders. And I have been in conversation with a lot of people about why is it this guy and I'm going to speak from a community standpoint is like why is it this particular player that has become the nephew of the black community. How is

1:04 this happened? And I'm not suggesting and asking that question to say it shouldn't have happened. I'm just trying to understand it because the levels of extremism in the opinion is mindbogling to me. I'm like, I kind of don't understand like why this is a thing um or a thing to this extreme. I understand rooting for him. I understand wanting him to do well. Totally get those. But why is it so extreme? So, case in point, if y'all think I'm the one who is, you know, making this up or whatever, this is what I mean by too extreme. And this is what I mean by that definition of Shadur Sanders truther. Here is Kendrick Perkins, NBA analyst on ESPN talking about Shadur Sanders recently.

1:57 Shad Sanders is the most powerful black man since 2009. You know what happened in 2009?

2:09 Right. That's when President Obama got elected in office. He's the most powerful black man since 2009. You said you were sitting there watching a game in your house and what you did? You ran. You ran with the TV.

2:23 Goddamn right. I did. What was you doing DB? I was cheering. I was happy. You was cheering like a [ __ ] when Shadura Sanders is on the field. And when I say powerful, powerful because it's two sides of it, right? Think about it, okay? You got the black community. He bringing the whole black community together. I ain't I ain't ran across one black person that that didn't said one bad thing about should do it.

2:47 We want him. And guess what? Not one. Because he has the balance. He has the balance of that I'm arrogant, but I'm humble, too.

2:56 Yeah. He have fun with this [ __ ] and he having fun with this [ __ ] And on top of that, y'all want me to say it ain't Y'all want me to say it ain't going to happen.

3:03 Yeah, he talking [ __ ] He's the most powerful black man in sports. No other no other He matter of fact, [ __ ] black man. He the most powerful player in sports. Shadur Sanders is the most powerful black man in sports and the most powerful black man since 2009. Guys, what are we doing? Like y'all got to help me understand this. And and see this is what is difficult about having this conversation. And I I I think uh I was on Yeah, I was on lear today is I have to really watch what I say about Shador Sanders. And the reason why I do because I realize that so many of our people love him to an extent, protect him to an extent that it's irrational.

4:11 And so I can't have a rational conversation with people who are being irrational. And so because of that, because I can't have that conversation, I said, "You know what y'all? Y'all got it." Because every time I try to, and I'm not even bringing what I think to be harsh critique. I'm just not at the point where I would say that Shadur Sanders is the most powerful black man since 2009 and I'm just saying he's not. So when I say that he's not, the truthers come out and say I'm denigrating a black man. So I I don't even know what to do with that. It's like if you if you don't get so irrational about Shadira Sanders, your whole blackness is called into question. just standing in the community is called into question. So, I'm trying to really wrap my mind around it. And y'all gonna have to help me in the comments. Why do we feel this way? Why do we feel this strongly to the point where you have an analyst and Kendrick,

5:12 I respect Kendrick. I like Kendrick. I like him on air. He does his thing. Why do you have someone in his position saying that Shadur Sanders is the most powerful black man since 2009? DID LEBRON DIE? AND BY THE WAY, WE confuse popularity for power. Popularity and power and influence are not the same thing. And maybe he meant influence and power or excuse me, maybe he meant influence and popularity. Maybe that's what he meant. And so, yeah, I get it. He is very popular. He was s He was one of the most power or more one of the most popular athletes when he played college football. I get it.

6:02 Oh, wait. Hold up. Let me let me Oh, let me let me take a time out right here. This is from time 1818. Jamal Hill, you put Angel Reese and Muhammad Ali in the same breath. You are saying something about a young black man. Wow. Time, let me educate you real fast because this has come up many times. I never said that. I need you to get media educated. Does that sound like something reasonable or rationable rational that I would say? I never said that. And I hate to tell y'all what happens. And this is this speaks to and I'm glad you brought up Angel Reese because Angel Reese is actually a very similar comparison to Shadurus Sanders in some ways. And I'm going to tell you why in a minute. But here's the thing.

6:42 Time 18188, it was a madeup quote, and I don't know if you know this happens or not, but there are bot farm generating content creators. And what they do is they put somebody like Angel Reese on a postcard because notice notice how you could never find any video of me saying that. You never saw it in a story. You never saw it in any mainstream media publication whatsoever that Jamal Hill called Angel Reese Muhammad Ali. You never saw that anywhere. you saw it on Facebook or you saw it on one of these little tired little blogs and they never gave you any origin source.

7:19 So, no, I am not crazy. I never compared Angel Reeves to Muhammad Ali. Another one that circulated that I supposedly said was me saying that she was the next Michael Jordan. I never said that either. So, y'all can time out with the dumb [ __ ] Get more the media literate. Next time you see a quote that appears too provocative, it's probably not true. So ask yourself some questions. Anyway, I say all that to say, the entire conversation around [clears throat] Shador Sanders is just out of control. It's just out of control on it's just out of control on both sides.

8:04 To say that Shadur Sanders is more powerful than Barack Obama was or as powerful making it similar is completely crazy. Shad Shadur Sanders entertains us. We are excited about his talent, excited about the possibility. He doesn't change anybody's life in one direction or another. Now maybe if you want to say like okay he can be representative of what you can accomplish. Well even that would be a stretch because he is somebody who is gifted at football which 99% of people are not. He is somebody who came from wealth. He came from a background that most people do not come from. So once again, you know, now if you want to take the simple nobody believed in me and I made it and I achieve it, it's a lot of athletes that show that and that is not to dismiss what he does. But I I am trying to understand what is it about Shadur Sanders that has made our community react the way that they have react in a way that is irrational in a

9:16 lot of ways. I just I just want to know. All right. I mean King uh King RC 36, you said he doesn't he doesn't he does a lot for the people. What does he do for the people? And I don't and I'm not asking this to say that he doesn't do anything for the people. I want y'all to tell me what is it about Shadura Sanders that made him the one that we said not on our watch? Ju I I am just curious from the community response. What is what is the thing that made us say that um because and I'm I'm glad you brought this up. Okay. So Pat Mahomes to me um has a lot of power in the in the league. And the reason that Pat Mahomes has a lot of power because I I promise you if something happened to Pat Mahomes, like you know how Tom Brady when he got hurt, suddenly you there was a decided change where you couldn't hit the quarterback below the knee anymore. That was the Tom Brady rule.

10:33 That's power. One quarterback gets hurt and they decide to change the whole rule book because of him. That is power. All right. So yeah, I get it. And and listen, I understand and I I don't want to act like I'm like completely culturally aware. I'm very aware. I understand that in this country, confident black men get put under a different level of scrutiny, persecution, and criticism as opposed to confident white men. Like I made this comparison the last time I discussed Shador Sanders is that there is a way in which confidence with white athletes is portrayed and discussed and welcomed that [clears throat] will never happen with black athletes. Wouldn't happen. Jackson Dart is a case point example. Do you know that if I mean got some jewelry, don't get me wrong, but I don't know. Let's just say Cam Ward, right? Cam Ward number one pick quarterback with the Titans. If Cam Ward wore that big

11:40 rope or what Cuban link that Jackson Dark wore, we'd be having a whole another conversation. A whole another conversation. And I don't say that because I don't think the Jackson D wear all the Cuban links you want. I DON'T CARE. WEAR THEM ALL. Talk all the [ __ ] Do all the Tik Tok dances. Do it all. But if he were if Jackson Dart was black and in New York, come on now. It'd be entire stories and think pieces about his behavior. So yeah, that that is why and then I think also the part of Shadur's story that also resonates is that there's a lot of black people who look at Shadur and especially for people who feel like he was wrongly, not necessarily wrongly evaluated, but picked in the wrong spot. Black people have this constant experience where we know we're good, but we wind up getting shorted. we wind up not getting the access point that everybody else gets. And so a lot of us can relate to that.

13:06 And because we can relate to that, Shadur Sanders doesn't just feel like another quarterback out there. It feels personal. I compare well when Michael Vic was at the height of his stardom. Black people love the hell out of Michael Big. Everybody love Michael Big. So I don't want to make but there's a certain cultural community conversation that takes place in our community that's frankly different than other places, right? And so Michael Vic was definitely he was the people's quarterback. But I gotta be honest, even with Michael Vic, and y'all can tell me if I'm wrong. Okay, tell me if I'm wrong.

13:52 Is even with Michael Vic, this layer of protectionism that Shadur has wasn't quite the same. And Michael Vic showed us all the things as a quarterback. Physical marvel, unbelievable speed, played the game in a way no one had ever seen before. just I didn't I think the way that that Shador Sanders is loved on is still different. It's still different. Brought up another name. There's Nat Graham 6250. Cam too. We love Cam Newton. That's true. But even with Cam, as much as people love Cam and did do love Cam still, it wasn't this. It was still different.

14:44 and I'm just trying to get to the bottom of it. So, as I'm trying to get to the bottom of it, I make sure to reach out to people whose opinions I trust to say like, "All right, I'mma play Ask a Black Man." Because maybe there are some things as a black woman I'm not getting as to why Shadur has become the one that we said not today. So, I asked a good friend of mine about this and he had a very interesting theory and you guys can tell me if you think this theory is right, if you think it's on base, off base, whatever. So, and I'm going to read to you exactly. I got my phone here. So, I'm going to read the the text messages. We had a text exchange and I if the person tells you who that we talked, that's fine, but I don't want to out them. it is somebody you guys know, but I just wanted to understand.

15:39 So, I texted him. I said, I'm trying to think of a a good cultural reference to explain the relationship black people have with Shadur or maybe the relationship that is specific to black men. And he said JFK Jr. JFK Jr. H interesting. Okay. I never saw that one coming. All right. JFK Jr. and I said, "How so?" This is what he texted me back. Legendary father who captured the imagination of a generation. This is why he's comparing Shadur Sanders to JFK Jr. like JFK is the model for the Boomer generation. Dion is kind of that for my generation of black men being that Dion is JFK.

16:28 The son comes along, can't match his father, but can approximate, but we want it for him so badly. He looks like his dad, reminds you of his dad, at times can feel like his dad, but there's only one pops, but both feel like cultural siblings rather than actual people. You all tell me if that is right or wrong. Shador Sanders, JFK, Junior. Important to put that junior on there. Um, in case I because I know you guys are are are going to laugh, but yes, that was my husband that just walked behind me. But JFK Jr. is an interesting comparison.

17:13 And I never thought of it that way. And I was like, that could explain why there is this reverence for him is that it's the spillover from Dion, but also because the son reminds us so much of the father that it's like they just we just got them both. And it is what it is. So that's that's not a bad analogy at all. And I see some of you in the comments are rocking with it. None of the boomers were worshiping JFK's dad. Well, they kind of did, but yeah, I I couldn't get it. So here, uh, Malikica, I think that's her name, Malikica 9266. I can only speak for me as a black woman, as we as black people are not a monolith, but I know it's certainly triggering for me as a woman working in corporate America, seeing what made me want to assume there was more there, but it got cut off. Sorry.

18:01 Um, so the comparison that I have from a sports standpoint is Angel Reese. And I'm sure that many of you have noticed that there is a layer of protection around Angel Ree. I do not think it's it's the same as Shador Sanders because there are plenty of people who do not like Angel Ree. Um especially a lot of men, I have to be honest, who, you know, tear her down as a basketball player, constantly saying like she wants to be an influencer more so than she wants to be a player, not working on her game, blah blah blah blah blah. However, with black women, Angel Reese is is our one. We like we going down. We going down swinging on this one. And I think it is because there is that relatability of having a black athlete who a woman who you see trying to sort of step into her unapologeticness and doing that and being denigrated for it and being castigated for it. and especially some of the conversation around Angel Ree and

19:08 what people have called her and there's a lot of black women who can relate to their authentic their authenticity being weaponized against them. And so that is why you see a particular response among black women as opposed to what you might see in other corners. So Angel Ree is the black woman Shador Sanders. So, I get it. Um, and see what I'm saying. I don't see Kayla Clark dressing half nude. Not that anyone wants to see her half nude. Okay, congratulations to you, Benny from Queens. Want a cookie? But that's when we hear those criticisms like, "Why she out there looking like that? How dare she look this way or that way?" When we see the policing of her body, her behavior, and her attitude, it immediately sends a bat signal to black women. And we like not today, not today, not not no way, no how. That is what it is. So I understand how sometimes athletes can dig and mean something deeper

20:16 culturally, but it is often surprising to me about who gets picked to wear this mantle and like how and why do we pick them? I think it's more circumstance than anything. And not that I I made this point before about OJ Simpson. And clearly I'm not just so the slow people. I am not putting Shadur Sanders in the category of OJ Simpson. But OJ Simpson was a symbol for a lot of black people when he was on trial for the murder of his ex-wife and her friend for Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. We knew as a community that OJ wasn't [ __ ] We knew this. We knew he didn't rock with us. We knew he wasn't really trying to be around us and be tight with us like that. But a lot of black people use OJ as a symbol because what was of greater importance was understanding how the criminal justice system works against us. That was the point.

21:11 That was the point. It's like the point wasn't it didn't have anything to do with OJ. It had everything to do with the fact that for a lot of black people, it was the opportunity to finally get one up on a justice system that has humiliated us, disrespected us, wrongly imprisoned many of us, unfairly sentenced many of us. That was the problem. And so, yeah, they OJ Simpson was used to bring a light to all those problems. And I got it, you know, much like I get why Angel Reese, a lot of women, black women, latch on to her. But in both cases with Shadur and Angel is we got to leave room to be able to talk about them in a reasonable way so that any level of accountability or critique is not seen as a complete, you know, as being complete traitors to the race. Like I defended some of Candace Parker's comments about Angel Reese. I'm like she she would know she she played in the league was one of the

22:21 best players of all time. And some of the criticisms she brought about about her game, which I thought were fair. I mean, they treated Candace like she had given a critique of Angel Reese with a white hood on. And that's that's ridiculous.

22:43 It's like we talking basketball people like it's okay to critique people about basketball right? So there's, you know, and and listen, I know that listen, it's not like we don't see white people do the same thing. So white people, if you think you exonerated from this level of irrational protectionism of people, you are sorely wrong. Cuz there's some people I could definitely call y'all out about. It's just the nature of people. So, it's not even a black or white thing. It's just truly the nature of people. And certainly, y'all have elevated some people symbolically because in your mind, it means something much more than what they're accused of waving at Kyle Writtenhouse right now. Cuz that would be one that you all elevate and go to the map for. And I'm like, uh, okay.

23:43 Out of this sense of we got to be Batman around here. A whole bunch of y'all was climbing that wall on January 6th a couple years ago, and a lot of y'all got them Donald Trump uh hats and bed sheets and and onesies and Yeah, man. So don't even don't even make it seem like this is something that is purely relative to our community because white folks got some protectionism too. I mean, I think this is just culturally the dynamic in this

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "Why is the Black Community so Protective of Shedeur Sanders?"?

Jemele Hill (Host), Kendrick Perkins (Guest).

What is "Why is the Black Community so Protective of Shedeur Sanders?" about?

The discussion centers on the intense scrutiny and unwavering support surrounding Shedeur Sanders within the Black community, highlighting the polarized opinions about his character and performance that often stray beyond football-related critiques. The conversation explores why he has become a symbolic figure for the community, examining the extremes of both admiration and criticism he receives.

What is mentioned in this Jemele Hill episode?

13 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Shador Sanders, Kendrick Perkins, Angel Reese, Celine Dion, JFK Jr., O. J. Simpson. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Why is the Black Community so Protective of Shedeur Sanders?"?

The episode runs 24 min; the transcript is about 3,710 words in 30 timestamped sections.

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