National Basketball Association (NBA) Hall of Famer and one of the 50 greatest players of all time, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, recently spoke up and defended Atlanta Hawks owner Bruce Levenson as not being racist.

Controversy sparked when an email from 2012 was unearthed. It was from Levenson to Hawks President Danny Ferry.

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The email was talking about why there were so many black fans in Hawks games, and the reasonable steps that could be taken to attract more white fans.

Soon after, Levenson publically apologized for his email, saying how the contents of the letter was "inflammatory nonsense," and how he understood if NBA fans were angry at him.

He soon offered to sell his shares from the Hawks.

While people may see this as a racist email, Abdul-Jabar doesn't see it that way. Instead, he sees it only as a business email. He adds that Levenson's only crime is "misguided white guilt."

When Abdul-Jabbar read the email, what he saw was an email full of questions any decent businessman would ask.

"Seems reasonable to ask those questions," he says. "If his arena was filled mostly with whites and he wanted to attract blacks, wouldn't he be asking how they could de-emphasize white culture and bias toward white contestants and cheerleaders?"

While he was affected by Levenson's statement saying how black people may have scared off the white fans, Abdul-Jabbar reasons out that there is no proof that this isn't the case.

He continues on to cite several Television shows - like Teen Wolf - and how the show plays pop songs in emotional scenes in order to cater to their desired demographic.

Abdul-Jabbar defended the email from Levenson, saying that businessmen have the right to ask these questions in order to increase business.

The only thing that made Abdul-Jabbar angry was how Levenson was quick to feel ashamed for his email and to ask for forgiveness.

The Atlanta Hawks are now handled by CEO Steve Koonin, until a prospective buyer approaches.

These events come right after Donald Sterling, former owner of the LA Clippers, was exposed as a racist, and was forced to sell his team.

TagsKareem Abdul-Jabar, Bruce Levenson, Not racist, Businessman