Pacers/Pistons Brawl
First thing's first, I didn't write anything on the Wolves' loss to the Pistons the other night. Not much to say about it; the Pistons came in and played their game in the fourth quarter. Not much to say about it.
Now then, to the more pressing issue. By the time everyone reads this, they'll likely see the video or at least hear about the incident in Detroit tonight with the Pacers/Pistons brawl. I'm seeing it now shortly after it happened, but I'm sure it will be all over the news for the days to come. It is quite honestly the worst fight I think I've ever seen. That's my definition of mayhem now. One news report I read compared it to a prison brawl, and that's exactly what it's like. I've seen video of the legendary brawls in sports. Ten cent beer night in Cincinnati in 1974 and Disco Demolition Night in Chicago in 1979 immediately comes to mind. I've even been to games myself where the fans have gotten a little too involved, but never anything even close to this. This has set a new level of shame. And that is the worst thing possible for the NBA. This is a league where a large portion of the country simply ignores it because it seems none of the players are respectible human beings. Even when there does seem to be a good one in the bunch, a diamond in the rough if you will, most people just sit back and say "we'll see in time." I remember Sprite commercials that lauded Kobe Bryant as an angel. And I truly believed he was a good guy, that he actually had his head on straight. Needless to say, now no one quite looks at Kobe the same way. Month after month, NBA players, and occasionally superstars, get caught with drug charges and other arrests and charges. Carmelo Anthony was caught just a few weeks ago with weed in his car. He seemed like he had everything going for him. Now I can't look at him the same way either. And readers of this site may remember the other night before the Wolves played the Pacers when I had nothing but praise for Jermaine O'Neal. Outside of the Timberwolves, he was my favorite player in the NBA, not only because of his talent, but everything I've heard about him says he's one of the greatest guys you could meet. And while certainly he wasn't the worst of the bunch in tonight's brawl, I saw him throw a few punches, and it was just another little note in my head about NBA players.
I know that not every NBA player is a selfish, violent, arrogant, egotistic, disgraceful (and so on...) human being. But this is the final straw, and now whenever I hear a glowing report on the personal side of any NBA player (and this will probably extend out to all sports as well), I have to take it with a grain of salt. And I feel this will be how it is for all fans from here on out as well. We've been fooled too many times, and at some point, you stop getting fooled.
As to who is to blame for all this, I'm not going to take a side. Everyone involved is equally responsible. Ben Wallace, Ron Artest, the fans, everyone. About the only person I've cleared is Larry Brown, who I fear might be so pissed off that he's going to quit the NBA entirely. This truly is the lowest day in NBA history, and the fallout from this will be intense, both in the form of suspensions and more long-lasting changes to the league. But what will be most interesting will be watching how the fans react to this, because who really wants to watch two teams of juvenile delinquents paid millions to play a game for a living, just so they can go buy weed or a gun? It's a shame the sport has been brought down that far, but that's where we stand now, and this incident has magnified that to the whole world.
I'll continue to watch and follow the Timberwolves. I think (and hope, and pray) that they generally hold themselves a little bit higher than this. But all it takes is a rivalry like Indiana and Detroit. Like perhaps a game against Denver. All it takes is two hothead players and a couple idiot fans and we get something just like this, and it brings the whole league down one more notch. Latrell Sprewell's comments at the start of this season already lowered my view of him forever, moreso than his previous history has. Sam Cassell begging for more money did the same thing, though he wasn't nearly as bad as Sprewell. Everything I've heard says Kevin Garnett is an outstanding guy, but now you just have to wonder.
I guess I feel a little more strongly on this than some others do, because during my childhood, I idolized Kirby Puckett. He was my hero. I grew up wanting to one day play center field for the Twins, just because he played out there. Kirby Puckett was one of my first words when I was just learning how to talk. And even to this day, I still want him to be my hero. Not only was he the greatest Twins player while I grew up, the reason why anybody even went to a Twins game for most of those seasons, but everything I heard said he was a great guy off the field as well. He gave countless dollars to charity, signed autographs, and just seemed greatful that he wasn't still working on a Ford assembly line or in the projects of Chicago. And then a couple years ago, just around the time he got inducted into the Hall of Fame, all this stuff comes out about him, about how his wife actually did all the charity stuff and stuck him in front of it all, how he beat his wife and threatened her and his kids, how he had affairs. So much stuff about him. I couldn't take it. I wasn't mentally ready to watch my hero fall from grace. But I knew it was true. And that was when I started to see that not all these sports heroes are what they're all cracked up to be. Charles Barkley probably saved himself from all this when he said "I am not a role model." But that's a whole 'nother can of worms.
Funny thing is, before I heard about this fight, I was planning on buying Troy Hudson's new rap album when it comes out, and maybe even shelling out $20+ to see his concert at the Target Center in December. And while this brawl has nothing to do with T-Hud, now I have no desire to do either one at all. Why build up sports heroes, just so they can disappoint in the future?
Everyone should feel free to comment on this in the comments section. I want to hear everyone's thoughts on this, because I think everyone's take on it is a little different.
Now then, to the more pressing issue. By the time everyone reads this, they'll likely see the video or at least hear about the incident in Detroit tonight with the Pacers/Pistons brawl. I'm seeing it now shortly after it happened, but I'm sure it will be all over the news for the days to come. It is quite honestly the worst fight I think I've ever seen. That's my definition of mayhem now. One news report I read compared it to a prison brawl, and that's exactly what it's like. I've seen video of the legendary brawls in sports. Ten cent beer night in Cincinnati in 1974 and Disco Demolition Night in Chicago in 1979 immediately comes to mind. I've even been to games myself where the fans have gotten a little too involved, but never anything even close to this. This has set a new level of shame. And that is the worst thing possible for the NBA. This is a league where a large portion of the country simply ignores it because it seems none of the players are respectible human beings. Even when there does seem to be a good one in the bunch, a diamond in the rough if you will, most people just sit back and say "we'll see in time." I remember Sprite commercials that lauded Kobe Bryant as an angel. And I truly believed he was a good guy, that he actually had his head on straight. Needless to say, now no one quite looks at Kobe the same way. Month after month, NBA players, and occasionally superstars, get caught with drug charges and other arrests and charges. Carmelo Anthony was caught just a few weeks ago with weed in his car. He seemed like he had everything going for him. Now I can't look at him the same way either. And readers of this site may remember the other night before the Wolves played the Pacers when I had nothing but praise for Jermaine O'Neal. Outside of the Timberwolves, he was my favorite player in the NBA, not only because of his talent, but everything I've heard about him says he's one of the greatest guys you could meet. And while certainly he wasn't the worst of the bunch in tonight's brawl, I saw him throw a few punches, and it was just another little note in my head about NBA players.
I know that not every NBA player is a selfish, violent, arrogant, egotistic, disgraceful (and so on...) human being. But this is the final straw, and now whenever I hear a glowing report on the personal side of any NBA player (and this will probably extend out to all sports as well), I have to take it with a grain of salt. And I feel this will be how it is for all fans from here on out as well. We've been fooled too many times, and at some point, you stop getting fooled.
As to who is to blame for all this, I'm not going to take a side. Everyone involved is equally responsible. Ben Wallace, Ron Artest, the fans, everyone. About the only person I've cleared is Larry Brown, who I fear might be so pissed off that he's going to quit the NBA entirely. This truly is the lowest day in NBA history, and the fallout from this will be intense, both in the form of suspensions and more long-lasting changes to the league. But what will be most interesting will be watching how the fans react to this, because who really wants to watch two teams of juvenile delinquents paid millions to play a game for a living, just so they can go buy weed or a gun? It's a shame the sport has been brought down that far, but that's where we stand now, and this incident has magnified that to the whole world.
I'll continue to watch and follow the Timberwolves. I think (and hope, and pray) that they generally hold themselves a little bit higher than this. But all it takes is a rivalry like Indiana and Detroit. Like perhaps a game against Denver. All it takes is two hothead players and a couple idiot fans and we get something just like this, and it brings the whole league down one more notch. Latrell Sprewell's comments at the start of this season already lowered my view of him forever, moreso than his previous history has. Sam Cassell begging for more money did the same thing, though he wasn't nearly as bad as Sprewell. Everything I've heard says Kevin Garnett is an outstanding guy, but now you just have to wonder.
I guess I feel a little more strongly on this than some others do, because during my childhood, I idolized Kirby Puckett. He was my hero. I grew up wanting to one day play center field for the Twins, just because he played out there. Kirby Puckett was one of my first words when I was just learning how to talk. And even to this day, I still want him to be my hero. Not only was he the greatest Twins player while I grew up, the reason why anybody even went to a Twins game for most of those seasons, but everything I heard said he was a great guy off the field as well. He gave countless dollars to charity, signed autographs, and just seemed greatful that he wasn't still working on a Ford assembly line or in the projects of Chicago. And then a couple years ago, just around the time he got inducted into the Hall of Fame, all this stuff comes out about him, about how his wife actually did all the charity stuff and stuck him in front of it all, how he beat his wife and threatened her and his kids, how he had affairs. So much stuff about him. I couldn't take it. I wasn't mentally ready to watch my hero fall from grace. But I knew it was true. And that was when I started to see that not all these sports heroes are what they're all cracked up to be. Charles Barkley probably saved himself from all this when he said "I am not a role model." But that's a whole 'nother can of worms.
Funny thing is, before I heard about this fight, I was planning on buying Troy Hudson's new rap album when it comes out, and maybe even shelling out $20+ to see his concert at the Target Center in December. And while this brawl has nothing to do with T-Hud, now I have no desire to do either one at all. Why build up sports heroes, just so they can disappoint in the future?
Everyone should feel free to comment on this in the comments section. I want to hear everyone's thoughts on this, because I think everyone's take on it is a little different.
posted by Ryan W. at 3:34 AM
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