This story first appeared in SLAM 228.
The cry of injustice has been drowned out for a long time. Recent events have suspended basketball and life as we know it. As one normality has been interrupted, another more uncomfortable truth has continued and the world has had time to notice. The pause has been necessary. For Maya Moore, it was her awareness of injustice that caused her to suspend basketball long before we did.
When she hit the cover of SLAM back in 2018, Moore was just 29 and overwhelmingly accomplished. Four-time champ, six-time All-Star, League MVP and far from slowing down. Still, away from basketball, there were far bigger things to achieve. Off the court, as her community suffered, she joined her WNBA colleagues in refusing to be silenced in their political protests. At the time, they were threatened with disciplinary action by the League, but they fought and won. Her biggest battle has been against the justice system itself, being so committed to criminal justice reform that she stepped away from the game to commit to fighting for one man’s freedom. It was a big deal. She missed two seasons while arguably in her physical prime, turning down another opportunity to play in the Olympics. Basketball wasn’t her priority. Instead, she was invested in fighting for justice for a man she believed was unjustly imprisoned. It would be a long and challenging process. Earlier this year, he was released.
Maya Moore’s SLAM 217 cover isn’t easy to find. [It sold out quick on SLAM’s online store, and it’s not readily available on eBay…yet.—Ed.] When I finally track it down, I’m going to frame it and put it on my daughter’s wall. When she’s old enough to understand who she’s looking at, I’ll want her to know that she can ball like Maya, and if she works hard enough, maybe her hands can be as quick and her shot as sweet. More than this, I hope she’ll understand that some achievements are bigger than basketball and that justice is worth fighting for.
