NBA Troubles
The recent trouble in the NBA has lead to a lot of discussion around water coolers and gatherings of sports fans and non-sports fans. It was one of the ugliest sports events ever.
The suspensions were justified and for the most part it seems that the players are going to accept their punishment. The players union will likely be successful in getting the Artest suspension reduced. I wouldn't have any problem with that as the league certainly has made it clear that the player reaction to fan stupidity was, to say the least, inappropriate. But one stupid fan and one angry player-millionaire is going to deprive the Indiana franchise and all their fans of an entire season of what the season ticket holders paid to see. This will seem a little out of balance especially if the video evidence shows that the fan behaviour instigated the entire affair. There is absolutely no room in sports for the type of behaviour that was exhibited by the players AND THE FANS.
Basically, the instigator fan is getting off and will come out ahead of the game if there isn't any criminal charge brought. First, banning him from the stadium and all NBA venues is a good start but in reality it will be impossible to enforce and he can always watch the games on TV. He can sell the remaining tickets of his season pass and be out of pocket very little. Second, any media inconvenience/notoriety he may be experiencing will pass.
I don't know what the right answer is here. It just seems that the instigator of the entire problem is not being held accountable.
For a different perspective of NBA problems I came across this article. While I don't agree that the race of the player is at all relevant, the article makes some interesting points. For me the flamboyance of the NBA players has far less to do with their race than their immaturity and the fact that some don't have a great deal of respect for the history of the game. There are plenty of African-American athletes that do have respect for the game. Tim Duncan, Jason Kidd and Ray Allen come immediately to mind.
On the other hand, you reap what you sow. Our society rewards individual achievement. Top-scorer, MVP, game-winning shots. They all lend themselves to indulging selfishness. We don't ever hear (nor probably want to hear) about the eighth or ninth best player on a team getting his five points and five rebounds a game. So when the rewards for being noticed are so huge why wouldn't athletes do things that are selfish? Oh, and by the way, the people doing the noticing and the ultimate paying (through endorsements) is Corporate America a.k.a White America.
