I've got a problem with the NBA. Well, I have a lot of problems with the NBA but this particular one irks me quite a bit. And it has to do with how Roger Goodell handles the NFL.
In the week leading up to the New York Jets and New England Patriots AFC playoff game, fans were treated to some of the best trash talk that professional football has to offer. Threats of ending players' careers, hopes for serious injuries, shots taken at Rex Ryan's wife, coaches having personal issues with players, family members insulted and everything culminating in the ultimate game of put up or shut up. The Jets backed up their talk and walked away winners.
But the jawing didn't stop at the final whistle. Bart Scott gave this gem of an interview that undoubtedly perpetuate the bitterness of this rivalry. Patriot players complained of Jets players demonstrating little class at the end, and Darrelle Revis fired right back. I don't care one bit about either one of these teams, and I have loved watching every second of this trash talk and dog-eat-dog attitude.
Which is why I have such an issue with the NBA. Everything about the league has transformed from the heated rivalries of the 80's and early 90's, to the fist and chest bumping, buddy buddy attitude that we see today. Could you ever imagine Chris Paul tweeting, "Man, I hope that we beat the Heat by 50 tonight and that LeBron ends his career with an injury." No, it just wouldn't happen. And, granted, that is an extreme example but the league has softened to a point of frustration. For God's sake, Chris Bosh just complained about a hustle play involving Omer Asik which resulted in a sprained ankle for him.
Not only is there the issue of every player in the league being every others' best friend, David Stern ensures that any trash talk or interaction during games will come at the cost of a fine. So even if players wanted to mix it up with each other, they would do so at the expense of their pocketbook. And NBA players are the most money-conscious athletes in my opinion so even if it would basically be pennies to them, they hoard all those pennies and don't want the league to have them.
I'm not asking players to return to the days where a normal foul would draw you a flagrant two and an ejection nowadays, I just want everyone to stop being so damn friendly. I hate to say it, but the only guy I don't see doing this is Kobe. He's all business every game, and even though he isn't using the media as his podium for trash talk, he doesn't spend ten minutes at the beginning of games to exchange pleasantries with the opponent.
The saddest part about all of this, the closest thing I can think of to the end of the Jets Patriots game is when LeBron walked off the court after game six of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Magic without shaking hands. And you know what? I liked that he did that. Don't stand around and act like old chums. And maybe he could've given them a brief handshake, but I still like the idea of LeBron feeling so displeased with losing that he just needed to leave.
I wish that David Stern would back off a little and commission a little more like Goodell. I wish that the NBA were more like the Jets and Patriots season series. But most of all, I wish that NBA players would toughen up and show a little more killer instinct out there. The league could use a shock like that.
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