If You Only Knew...with Dr. Debby Stroman The Diversity Movement

Mack Brown, head football coach at UNC, opens up about growing up in the south (and what his parents did when they saw racist behavior), his growth when he started to realize his privilege, the patches the football team put on their jerseys in 2020, and why he’s not afraid to talk about race.

With everything that NC State National Champion Dereck Whittenburg does, it's amazing he has time to sleep. "There's no time to rest. You'll have plenty of time to rest when you go to heaven. But until then, while you on this Earth, you have to serve." Today, Dereck and Dr Debby talk about how it all got started, his films, his coaching career, and what college athletes are looking for in a mentor on campus.

John Tobias (ESPN consultant, Lecturer at UNC Charlotte) is an expert in analytics, and, as a person of color, that’s pretty rare. Today, John and Dr. Debby talk about John’s career journey, what analytics means to sports, his passion for educating, being the only one in the room, and what we can do to encourage more diversity in sports analytics.

Today’s guest is Jason Williamson, Vice President of Oracle for Startups and Oracle for research. Jason and Dr Debby have a lot in common - they both went to UVA, they’re both basketball players, they both love analytics in sports, and they have a passion for elevating historically underrepresented communities. They talk about all of that on the show today, plus how a misison trip led Jason to understand his privilege - and his responsibility to influence.

The decisions made in the NBA front offices aren't easy - and many of them have nothing to do with player trades or free agent signings. When other NBA teams were in the Bubble in Orlando, how did the Charlotte Hornets react? How does the front office view business intelligence and analytics when not everyone buys in? And when players protest, what should the executives do? Dr Debby Stroman sits down with Charlotte Hornets VP of Consumer Engagement Seth Bennett.

Sam Perkins and George Lynch are Tar Heel legends and NCAA basketball national champions - Sam in '82 and George in '93. As Black athletes, Sam and George have had to navigate whether to stand up for what's right or to stay quiet on the issues that matter.

Today, Dr. Debby Stroman talks to Sam and George about their experiences as players, coaches, and parents, how athletes today can use their voices, and how Coach Dean Smith would have reacted to the racial tension in our country.