NBA player Isaiah Hartenstein explains his “level of Blackness” stating, “I’m bright-skin.”
TMZ reports that the Knick recently sat down with the ‘Roommates Show’, and shared his Black background.
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Isaiah’s teammate and co-host of the show, Jalen Brunson, said, “Let’s just jump right into it. Umm, are you Black?”
“I really wanted to cover that,” fellow host and New York Knick, Josh Hart, stated.
He continued, “Explain your blackness. What level of Blackness?”
“So, my level of Blackness?” Isaiah repeated. “Well, you know it’s like light-skin. I’m bright-skin.”
“Ohh! Bright-skin! I like that. My child’s bright-skin,” Hart responded.
“I’m above light-skin. But yeah, my dad’s Black,” Isaiah clarified.
How Black People Change When They Find Out
According to Harenstein, he is treated differently from Black people when they learn of his Black background.
The power forward said, “Anytime people find out…y’all know ‘Key and Peele’? The show. So, you know like when Barack Obama is going in…White man handshake different.”
“When they find out I’m Black. It changes. The whole vibe changes,” he said.
The hosts burst into laughter.
“It goes from ‘Hey how you doing,’ to ‘Hey! Yo, what up man! How you doin’?!’ Hartenstein explained.
Hartenstein said that he didn’t know how he should identify. His father, Florian Hartenstein, is reportedly mixed race and his mother, Theresa, is Caucasian. Isaiah went on to explain that he grew up in Eugene, Oregon. The center was born when his German-American dad was in college playing basketball for the University of Oregon Ducks.
“I don’t know if I claim Black, White, German, American. I’m just kind of everything,” the baller said.
Check out the full interview on Roommates Show here:
Social Media Weighed In On Isaiah’s “Blackness”
Fans reacted to Hartenstein’s explanation on Kicks Instagram report.
@leftonread20 quipped, “All I hear is Katt Williams say, ‘who’s white baby is that!’
“So he can say the word or nah?” @tim_under_tooth inquired.
“What he put on his birth certificate someone?” someone else added.
I guess we’ll see you at the cookout, Isaiah!
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