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Amare Stoudemire and Allan Houston headlined a celebrity panel that converged in Harlem on Friday night to address a growing concern in America: the fatherless crisis. According to the latest U.S. Census Bureau report, more than 25 million children now live apart from their biological fathers. That's a 15.3 percent increase (eight to 23.3 percent) from 1960 to 2006. But communities such as Harlem face the biggest challenges. Nearly two in three (65 percent) of African-American children live in fatherless homes, and 80 percent of those children can expect to live at least a part of their childhood living apart from their fathers. Along with ESPN NBA analyst Chris Broussard, rapper Styles P, actor Chaz Lamar Shepherd and NBA player Etan Thomas, Stoudemire and Houston -- who are all fatherhood activists through different initiatives -- discussed the topic of fatherhood and manhood in multiple ways. The event also featured poems on the topics by spoken-word artists J. Ivy, Julian Thomas and Messiah Ramkissoon. ESPN.com

Amare Stoudemire, Allan Houston, Chris Broussard, Etan Thomas 

Stoudemire, who also has a new book out for children called "STAT: Home Court," talked about losing his father, Hazell, at 12 years old, and how he turned to hip-hop, listening to 2Pac and The Notorious B.I.G. for direction. Now, as an entertainer himself, he understands the importance of helping under-served children find their way. And he wants fathers to have that commitment with their own children. Even in his 10th year in the NBA, Stoudemire, who has three kids, still feels pro athletes have a lot of work to do. "We have to be kings of the world, leaders, so we can build kings of the world," he said. "What they see on TV is that we got the big money, the big cars, the beautiful homes. But we've got to figure out ways to be positive influences to the youth because they follow us. Whatever we do, they want to do. We have to tell them to stay in school and keep their heads up. I was a history buff growing up. It seems like it's not cool to be smart, but it is." ESPN.com

Amare Stoudemire, Allan Houston, Chris Broussard, Etan Thomas 

Etan Thomas: The fact that so many athletes wanted to be involved in President Obama’s reelection campaign runs contrary to the popular image that professional basketball players are apolitical. It’s important to note that every athlete involved in the “Obama Classic” is wealthy enough to be a beneficiary of Romney and Ryan's trickle down economics policies that tend to favor the rich. It would be easy for us to adopt the greed and the “I got mine” mentality that has overtaken many of the people who share our tax bracket. The reason for our stance? Many of the athletes who participated last week come from humble beginnings. And we have not forgotten where we come from. Personally, I don't need a tax break, and I think many of us share this view. Teachers, firemen, construction workers, receptionists, farmers, joe the plumbers, those are the ones we need to help along. It's that mentality that caused all of these athletes to lend their names, time, and effort to help reelect President Obama. Washington Post

Barack Obama, Etan Thomas 

Thomas is working out in hopes of landing a roster spot next season. If successful, he’ll try to improve his career averages of 5.7 points and 4.7 rebounds. But he’s much more concerned about the dreary statistics on jail, teenage pregnancies, suicide rates and high school dropouts that worried his mother and continue to inundate society. That’s why he speaks regularly at schools and correctional facilities and why he wrote a new book, “Fatherhood: Rising to the Ultimate Challenge.” Washington Times

Free Agency, Etan Thomas 

Former Wizards teammate Laron Profit and former Redskins linebacker LaVar Arrington were among those joining Thomas on the church panel, which drew more than 200 men and boys. Thomas knows that sports serve as connective tissue between males of each generation. He also knows that players have the power to be positive or negative influences. “That’s why I wanted to include them in the book,” said Thomas, who intersperses his own writing with 44 essays from athletes, entertainers and other celebrities. “I wanted to have Kevin Durant tell how he grew up in a single-parent household. Then I wanted to show Derek Fisher, Grant Hill and Allan Houston talking about how much they love their kids. Washington Times

Free Agency, Etan Thomas 

Kendall Marshall: Etan Thomas speaking the truth, hope people listenin. Twitter

Etan Thomas, Kendall Marshall 

The other members of the club are former NBA guard and current Iowa State head coach Fred Hoiberg, Etan Thomas, a former NBA forward who wants to get back in the league next season, and forward Jeff Green, who missed this NBA season because of a heart surgery but is expected to return next season. FOXSports Florida

Miami Heat, Ronny Turiaf, Injuries, Jeff Green, Etan Thomas, Fred Hoiberg 

Thomas sat out all of 2007-08 but returned to play in the NBA from 2008-11. Although he wasn't active this past season, Thomas, who turned 34 in April, said he’s not yet retired and will try to make a team next season. FOXSports Florida

Miami Heat, Ronny Turiaf, Injuries, Jeff Green, Etan Thomas, Fred Hoiberg 

Unlike Turiaf and Thomas and expected to be unlike Green, Hoiberg did not return to the NBA following his heart surgery. He said he could have come back but didn’t because he was the father of four young children and didn't want to take any chances. FOXSports Florida

Miami Heat, Ronny Turiaf, Injuries, Jeff Green, Etan Thomas, Fred Hoiberg 

Al Horford: What's good! Check out @etanthomas36 his book on Fatherhood is available. Its great to be a part of it! Twitter

Atlanta Hawks, Al Horford, Etan Thomas 

When Etan Thomas asks, “Who’s your daddy?” it is not a rhetorical question. The 11-year-NBA veteran and former Syracuse standout center explores all angles of male parentage in his latest book, “Fatherhood: Rising to the Ultimate Challenge,” out Tuesday. A father of three, the 33-year-old Harlem-born Thomas understands daddy issues intimately. The Obama administration even chose him to participate in the President’s town hall meetings on fatherhood. New York Daily News

Etan Thomas 

What motivated you to write this book? Etan Thomas: I just wanted to go through each topic and aspect of fatherhood. Some parts focus on young men getting over the anger of not having a father with them. In another chapter, I deal with the fact that when kids are younger and come from a single-parent home, all these statistics tell them that they are not going to be successful. They are going to end up in prison. I want to tell young people they can create their own path and here are some people who have done just that. These are people who have been through situations way worse than yours. Just look at Baron Davis and Kevin Durant, both of whom were able to rise above their upbringings. New York Daily News

Etan Thomas 

Etan Thomas: How could we justify hiring an outside firm to perform an audit when we have annual audits performed every year? The results of those audits are shared with the executive committee and player representatives at its annual meetings, and at that time any player may request an independent review of the union's business practices and finances. Derek, you know this. If any questions arise and we need any further investigation we deal with it at that time. We have thoroughly reviewed the most recent audit and are satisfied with its findings. There have been no red flags raised by anyone. Huffington Post

Derek Fisher, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

Etan Thomas: There is a system in place, and again, how can we justify disrupting this system without and specific accusations, any proof, or reason for suspicion of any wrongdoing? That would be irresponsible of us. The board asked you to explain yourself. Tell us if you suspected that Mr. Hunter had utilized player union funds without executive committee approval, and you offered no such evidence or reason for suspicion. You know you cannot side step the entire board and start a private investigation with an outside firm without the approval of even one person on the board. We move as a unit, not as individuals. That system is put in place so that no one person can carry out a private agenda. Huffington Post

Derek Fisher, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

Etan Thomas: It looks like it was just a power play which has backfired and now the situation between the two of you appears to be beyond fixable. If you would've presented a reason for suspicion, maybe you could have convinced the majority of the executive committee to support you, but without proof, you had nothing. So, when it came to vote, which is the way we make decisions, you lost 0-8. I wish you two could have gone into a room, aired out whatever it is that you two needed to air out and moved on. But that didn't happen, and honestly in that, I think both of you are at fault. I don't know all of the details of your issues with each other, and really, I don't want to know. It's not my business. But as you know Derek, there are rules to every game, in every organization, and when you break those rules, there are consequences. And as a result of your actions the board has voted unanimously and I would implore you to simply bow out gracefully. Huffington Post

Derek Fisher, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

Not every story has such a happy ending: Traylor, who went on to play overseas after heart surgery in 2005, died last spring of a heart attack. Though the specifics of his death remain unclear, it's a reminder of the seriousness of Green's condition and a testament to the importance of doctors finding it when they did. Green is aware of each man's story and has reached out to those who have survived. "I've talked to Etan," Green said. "I haven't had a chance to reach out to Ronny yet -- I've talked to Ronny through text, and Fred Hoiberg, he texted me, so they reached out. But I'll probably give them a call within the next day or two, just get their thoughts on the whole procedure and see what might be ahead of me in the next couple weeks." ESPN.com

Boston Celtics, Injuries, Jeff Green, Etan Thomas 

To his credit, David Stern can spin information with the best of them. That being said, I have not met one player who, after fully understanding the particulars of the NBA's proposal, concluded that this is an acceptable deal. So my question is, what will it take for the NBA CEOs to understand that they are not going to be able to manipulate the players through the media? ESPN.com

Atlanta Hawks, CBA, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

During recent negotiations, reporters continuously tweeted and wrote articles citing "anonymous sources" saying that we were closer to a deal then we actually were, or that progress was being made. Why do reporters keep giving false hope to fans? ESPN.com

Atlanta Hawks, CBA, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

Etan Thomas: To his credit, David Stern can spin information with the best of them. That being said, I have not met one player who, after fully understanding the particulars of the NBA's proposal, concluded that this is an acceptable deal. So my question is, what will it take for the NBA CEOs to understand that they are not going to be able to manipulate the players through the media? ESPN.com

Atlanta Hawks, CBA, David Stern, Lockout, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

UCAM Murcia has ruled out signing Etan Thomas. TuBasket.com

Atlanta Hawks, Free Agency, Spain, Etan Thomas