James Cadogan, Executive Director, National Basketball Social Justice Coalition

Formed jointly by the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association in 2020, the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition is a 501(c)(4) advocacy organization that leads the NBA family’s collaborative efforts to address racial inequality and advance social justice. James Cadogan is the Coalition’s first Executive Director, a post he has held since April 2021. Cadogan previously served as the inaugural director of the Thurgood Marshall Institute at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and spent eight years in the administration of President Barack Obama, where he was a senior official at the United States Department of Justice. Cadogan joins RISE’s Ian Cutler and Jared Shanker to discuss the Coalition’s priorities and intentions for 2022 around policing, criminal justice reform and voting rights, and shares inspiring examples of athlete activism. We also discuss how the Coalition unites NBA players, executives, coaches and team governors, as well as the overall landscape of 2022 and how advocates for racial justice in sports and beyond can build on the momentum from the last two years to achieve real progress.