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Growing Epidemic
By: Keith Dobkowski, NBA News Writer
Had a survey been completed last Thursday asking NBA fans
whether a basketball player would ever go into the stands after
a fan and which basketball player would be most likely to enter
the stands, overwhelmingly the answers would have been yes
and Ron Artest. Picking what day it was going to happen was
the hard part.
The Throw-down in Motown will live in NBA infamy. That is until
the next shocking yet predictable player-fan clash occurs.
With the desire for answers and scapegoats many have pointed
immediately to Artest’s volatile personality, alcohol sales at the
Palace, and the proximity between fans and players. But the
many are ignoring the true problem, which is a growing epidemic
in all our professional sports.
On Monday, Charles Barkley shared his opinion of the fight and
justified Artest entering the stands. Barkley stated that before
you are an NBA player, you are a man. Being so, if someone
throws a soda at you the natural reaction as a man is to fight.
And here is part one of the problem.
The natural reaction is not to fight, but to question. We are
taught at a very young age that two wrongs do not make a
right. Yet Barkley, a 40-year-old adult, like Artest, just doesn’t
get it.
Part two of the problem is easiest to explain by looking at
LeBron James. James, who has done nothing wrong, is a great
example of the modern athlete. By all accounts, James was first
recruited to play basketball when he was in fifth grade. While
his peers were playing tag, learning division and learning that
two wrongs do not make a right, James was being recruited to
play hoops and offered special protection for his playing ability.
In high school, James was doing what the Cleveland Cavaliers
could not—sell out Gund Arena. James’ high school was making
thousands of dollars off James and one can theorize, went to all
lengths to protect James. Do you think that if James was failing
math, his school may have acted upon his behalf?
This protection is seen everywhere. As 2004 NBA season began,
James announced the birth of his first child. Congratulations but
how come a big deal was never made about James having an
out-of-wedlock baby with a teenager. James himself is teenager.
There are very few college graduates in the NBA today and even
fewer who actually received a real education. A combination of
protection and lack of education creates a very dangerous
person. A person who can do no wrong and is not given tools to
make good decisions becomes a disaster waiting to happen.
Whether it results in rape in Colorado, shooting a chauffer, or
beating up a fan, this is a trend that needs to stop.
David Stern and the NBA says it cares, but just like the schools
the players attended, the NBA’s real care is money. Stern and
the NBA will chalk this off as an isolated event, try to restore
order and ignore the problems facing the league.
Several years ago one of Shawn Kemp’s ten illegitimate children
was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated under the
caption, “Where’s my daddy?” In the years that have passed
this issue has never been dealt with properly by the NBA. And
now LeBron is a father to an illegitimate child.
The cycle continues…
In the past week we have witnessed pre-game fights in the NFL
between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns and
a full riot between the South Carolina and Clemson football
teams.
There is a desire to make the Throw-Down in Motown an isolated
incident. And everyone benefits on the short-term if Artest’s
actions are excused as an isolated event. But the truth is that
Artest has become the face of all that is wrong with sport.
There is a missing factor and that is the fans. Basketball will
always exist, but the NBA cannot without fans. For every child
who is now fearful of an NBA player and for every parent who
had to explain what Artest did, the NBA lost fans.
There is a major problem in the NBA and it cannot be fixed by a
few suspensions. Artest is not an isolated event, but rather the
face of an epidemic.
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