'Nothing should have to die for me to live': Ex-Wildcat Joseph Blair talks veganism, advocacy

The holidays can be a challenging time for a vegan.

Turkey and ham can be a vegan nightmare. So can desserts, many of which are laced with dairy products.

Joseph Blair, the former UA basketball standout and staffer who’s now an assistant coach with the NBA’s Washington Wizards, finds ways to work around that.

“I have margaritas and tacos for Thanksgiving. That’s what I’m also making for Christmas. I make them myself,” said Blair, who will return to Arizona on Tuesday, when the Wizards take on the Suns in Phoenix. “I’ll get plant-based meat crumbles, add chili powder, add sofrito, fry them in vegetable oil with corn tortillas, add homemade salsa and vegan sour cream and cook it up with some margaritas. That’s my favorite meal on Christmas and Thanksgiving. …

“The holidays are about spending time with people, not the meals you eat.”

Blair, who started in Arizona’s frontcourt during the Wildcats’ run to the 1994 Final Four, converted to veganism seven years ago.

“I was doing it before it became popular,” Blair said.

Blair doesn’t use any animal products. No meat. No dairy. No eggs. Not even honey.

“No animal on the planet takes milk from another animal but us. No animal takes milk after infancy but us,” Blair said. “There’s no giraffe drinking gorilla milk, there’s no gorilla drinking goat milk. If you think about the strongest mammal alive, it’s an elephant. The one that is like us and is still strong is the gorilla. If you told me, ‘I want to be as strong as a gorilla, so I’m going to drink gorilla milk,’ well that’s still pretty sick and nasty, but that makes sense.

“What about a cow do we want to be? It’s not fast, it’s not super strong; it’s a cow. Also, what does it say about us as a society that we’re eating animals that we’d love and they would love us back? We’re not eating tigers, panthers and lions; we’re eating cows that would let us pet them, pigs that have a higher IQ than a dog and a chicken that would let us love them. That’s pretty disgusting, in my opinion.”

The Star spoke to the 48-year-old Blair about his veganism, how it has impacted his well-being and how he’s using his social media platforms to highlight restaurants in NBA cities.

When did you decide to first become a vegan?

A: “I think it goes back to when I first left the U of A. When I first started playing professionally, I was vegetarian for 10 years. I went from vegetarian to pescatarian towards the end of my playing career. Once I retired, I just kind of fell off the wagon and started eating everything. Then seven years ago, my girlfriend at the time called me one day, saw a documentary and was almost brought to tears because of the treatment of animals. She said that she was going vegan and I said, ‘Well, I love you and want to support you, so I’m going to go vegan, too.’ That’s what spurred it off. … When I was vegetarian for all of those years, it was about my health and just feeling better. When I was at the U of A, I was a little chubby. I broke through and became more fit when I changed my diet. When you look at the exploitation of other creatures, I think that’s more powerful for me than the health portion of it. You can argue with me about what’s good or bad for you, but I think we can all agree that nothing should have to die for me to live. That’s how I live now. Conscious living and knowing that I’m not causing death is something that I’m proud of.”

Before you converted to veganism, what was your go-to source of meat or protein?

A: “Take your pick. I had a player ask me the other day, ‘You don’t miss meat?’ I said, ‘(Heck) yeah, I miss meat. I could go for some lemon-pepper wings from Wingstop. I used to smoke ribs, chicken, all kinds of stuff. It’s not that I don’t miss the taste of it; I just understand now where chicken comes from and the prices paid for those things. Two wings at Wingstop, that’s an entire life. They only get two wings on each chicken. When you think about the wastefulness of some people’s eating habits, that was a life given up for that. I choose to not be a part of it. There’s tons of things that I without a doubt miss the taste of, but I think my taste for conscious living outweighs the taste for my palette.”

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Was it easy to go vegan?

A: “I was pretty cold turkey. I started to throw away food because I started to look into where this food was coming from. I was grossed out and felt like I’ve been bamboozled and tricked into not associating where the food on my plate came from. Not only that, but the type of crap they put in the animals. Mind you, I’m by no means saying we don’t also put pesticides into vegetables, too, but when you add in the cruelty factor, I couldn’t bring myself to feel right about eating that. I wasn’t tasting the flavors, I was tasting death.”

Have you educated curious NBA players about veganism?

A: “I take my veganism how I take my religion. I’m not going to constantly throw it in your face, but if you ask me about it, you better be ready to listen. I won’t say it at all, then they find out and go, ‘Wait, you’re vegan?’ ‘Yep.’ ‘How long?’ ‘Seven years.’ They’re absolutely shocked. They always ask me, ‘Well, where do you get your protein?’ ‘Do I look protein deficient?’ Vegans are supposed to look unhealthy, super skinny and not athletic, but here I am, 6-10, 255 pounds and healthier than a lot of guys who’ve played on my teams. I’m still in better shape than a lot of guys who are younger than me. … I have good conversations all the time and they’re open to hear it and want to try it. … I want to have some impact. One vegan meal saves so much water and lives more than people actually imagine.”

What led you to use your Instagram to feature vegan restaurants in different NBA cities?

A: “When I first started it, my goal was to push veganism. … I wanted to show people the variety of the things you eat, how good you can eat. You can go to nice places, low-key places and there’s all these different varieties of establishments and options available, and I really wanted to bring that to light. One vegan meal makes a difference. If you can do it one day a week, two days a week, three days a week, whatever, it makes a difference for not only our animals but our society. It takes thousands of gallons to water the lands of animals that you’re eating, and it takes away from our oceans with the fish you’re eating. Read up on the effects of meat-eating on your body and the environment.”

What’s your favorite vegan restaurant?

A: “It’s so hard to say, because I always say, ‘This is one of my favorites’ in every city we go to. … We’re here in L.A. and I love Crossroads Kitchen, it’s an Italian restaurant, but tomorrow I might go to Gracias, Madre; it’s a Mexican vegan restaurant. Then there’s another place, Monty’s Good Burger, and it’s just burgers. It’s amazing. There’s another place that makes Nashville hot chicken sandwiches that I love. It’s all about what you’re in the mood for. … Every city, you can find it. … When I’m in Tucson, Charro Vida is my place. They have some mini chimichangas that I go crazy for and they make it enchilada-style. Whenever I’m in Tucson, I go there. Over the summer, (Wizards) Rui Hachimura was in Tucson working out because he’s close with (UA) Coach (Tommy) Lloyd, and I took Rui there for dinner. And he went back for lunch the next day, he loved it so much.”

How do you think veganism will impact your life in the long term?

A: “Health-wise, No. 1. The fiber cleans out my system and I feel like I manage my weight quite well and I have a clear conscience for the way I’m living. It’s something that can’t be taken from you whatsoever. Any discipline in your life starts with your diet. If you can control your diet, you can control anything else in your life. For me, it’s the right way to go. … It’s deeper than just putting things in your mouth. … Sexism, racism, antisemitism, all of that began with meat-eating, because it was the first time in your life that you were taught something is less than your own life. If I said, ‘Hey, let’s cut the head off this chicken,’ the kids will cry and say, ‘No, don’t do that, that’s so mean.’ But we teach them that it’s OK and their life doesn’t mean anything. How does that get transferred over? ‘This Black life is less than yours, this Jewish life is less than yours, this woman’s life is less than yours,’ and it just gets carried over and perpetuated in so many ways. … That level of thinking when it comes to being a vegan, in my opinion, you look at things a little bit deeper. For me, that’s been a blessing.”