Villanueva vs. Hollins: Round One

I don't really like to offer up advice to NBA players on how they should act.  I wouldn't want some random person telling me how to do my job or what I needed to change to improve either.  But maybe someone should tell Charlie Villanueva that there is a pretty clear line of appropriate behavior on the court that he egregiously crossed.

Look, I understand, Charlie.  I really do.  I wouldn't want to play in Detroit either.  It is a franchise that has made mistake after mistake (including the contract that they signed you to) and has effectively killed the next three years of their existence.  You're 23 games under .500.  The Pistons organization is undergoing an enormous facelift right now with a change in ownership.  You have to play with an over-the-hill Richard Hamilton who probably just sits at his locker and laughs as he counts his stacks of bills.  You're coached by John Kuester, a neurotic control-freak who looks like he should be coaching the old Detroit Shock, not the Pistons.  And to top it off, the most relevance you have had as an NBA player was running to your social media army when Kevin Garnett exchanged words with you.

All of that is enough to make me want to start a fight with the second worst team in the league too.  Especially over a pretty clean attempt to get through a screen.  You know what, you're right, Charlie.  I'm sorry.  I shouldn't blame you for Hollins trying to work through a screen.  Doesn't he know how tough you are?

"I will kill that dude," Villanueva screamed.  Seems rational to me.  Equally rational: attempting to chase down Hollins in the tunnel room AND on the loading dock after the game.  Over a screen that Villanueva himself set.

What will it take to get incidents like this to stop in the NBA?  Yes, they are amusing and give sportswriters plenty to discuss.  But the NBA has a perpetual image crisis, which over the past decade they've fought hard to combat.  And as they make strides towards improving their image in the public's eyes, league executives are forced to address incidents such as this every season.

All you can do is shake your head at a player like Villanueva.  But just make sure you don't bump into him when you do; otherwise he might threaten to kill you too.