In Northern Ireland, soccer led to rioting and violence between Protestant and Catholic boys. But could basketball be different?

One man thought so, and he created a team of Catholics and Protestants together.

Mike Evans, founder and executive director of Full Court Peace, says basketball can be a unifying force. (The Dalai Lama agrees with him, by the way.)

In this episode of the On the Whistle podcast, I talked with Mike about how basketball can unify people of different races, religions, and economic classes.

We discussed:

Who Mike is and how Full Court Peace got its start in Northern Ireland

The language coaches use to bridge deep divisions on a team

Expanding the program into Cuba and cities in the U.S.