Living and rooting for a “lesser” market team has always been an exercise in frustration.  The recruiting possibilities are hampered because our team owners are not willing to spend gratuitously above the luxury limits like the big market, and therefore richer teams so easily do.  We attempt to take pride in our “working man’s” team image, but deep down we just resent the ability for big markets to buy their way into franchise dominance.  The money paid to players in general is completely out of control, but that is another rant.

So as our players compete, and often quite well, with their lineup of hardworking and lesser known names, we root for them and revel in the wins against the league favorites.  Sure, we get our moments during the season with “big” wins against such teams, but come later in the season when seeding and playoff considerations take place the tone of the games change with them.  Each team puts out additional effort, but the officiating seems also to take a turn.  More favor is given for the star players; the literal money men for the league and especially for advertising.  It’s no secret; the sportscasters talk about it at length, even expecting and remarking that such talent and veteran status deserves the star treatment.

Hogwash.

A fair game starts with fair play and ends with fair officiating.  Every player should be called under the same rules and with the same consideration.  I long ago tired of Shaq getting allowance for his knock-em-out-of-the-way-and-dunk moves along the baseline.  I practically fall out of my seat every time I see a hook employed by Kobe or any other player to pin their defender in place while they make a photo-op move to the basket.  Traveling?  Don’t get me started.

Up to this point, we NBA conspiracy theorists had to rely on quoting situations, recording video proof from games (posted to YouTube these days by many), and simply be considered those crazy fans that just can’t deal with the fact that their team sucks.  Guess what, now we have proof.

Now we have NBA refs admitting to betting on games.  Sure, they are trying to say they only used inside information for gain, but we all know the reality is when money is riding on a game there has to be an influence on their play calling.  There is no doubt in my mind that the outcome of games were altered when it served their needs.  And this is only a situation so public simply because someone was caught.  How much of this has and is going on behind the scenes where someone has not been nailed for their illicit activity?  I guarantee you much more than we know about simply because of this one situation.

I have always loved the game of basketball.  I loved playing it before I blew my knee out, sidelining me for life.  I love watching it.  Yet now I rarely watch a professional game.  Sure, I still enjoy the sport; but the collegiate level is far more entertaining to me.  For some reason the college game seems, somehow, less scripted.

I am not a big conspiracy theorist, so I really don’t believe it is all scripted and decided in advance like a WWF wrestling match.  That said, you can’t deny that officiating is more of an art than a science.  Professional sports are about money and entertainment value.  Team owners, TV broadcasters and players all know this, and so do the officials.  Though there are some hard fast rules that are supposed to be followed, there is a heavy dose of subjectiveness thrown in at the officials disposal.
What gets me most is the obvious favoritism the “big name” players get in the interest of making the game a highlight reel.  Broadcasters often comment on it, we all see it; there is no denying it.  Touted and perhaps truly one of the best to ever play was of course Michael Jordan; and he was given the most leniency out of anyone I have ever seen.  Remember the famous play we have seen a thousand times where Jordan literally pushed Brian Russell out of the way to make the winning shot against the Jazz in the playoffs?  That shot should have never counted had the rules of the game been applied equally to all players and in all situations.

All the big names benefit from it.  Tracy McGrady in this game I am watching.  Kobe Bryant, Shaq, Karl Malone, Dwayne Wade, etc.

It can be argued though whether it is good for the game or not?  Is the game all about pure competition or is it about better entertainment?  If you side with the entertainment argument, then do the “little” teams from smaller cities ever really have a chance?  Are we watching a sport that is becoming more contrived and driven by money that will always be won by the teams that bring the more popular players and better storyline?

Perhaps that is a bit more cynical than reality, but it does cause me to wonder periodically.  I think the sport still retains a bit more credibility than that.  There will always be the whiners that complain about the officiating, almost always from the fans of the team that lost of course.  There has been some real concern about it in recent years though.  Remember the Mavericks owner Mark Cuban spending over a million dollars in fines his first year to make the point that some things were very wrong with the lack of oversight in officiating?  I think he had a very valid point, though his methods of making it were a bit on the grandstanding side of things.

This is one of many reasons why I spend more time watching college games than I do pro sports.  The egos are smaller, mistakes by officials and players are more expected and a part of the game, and game seems much closer to something I can relate to.  The game I am watching tonight I am only seeing about half of, and it is only the third half of an NBA game I have watched all season.  I used to be an avid fan and watcher of the game, and I no longer feel that drive.  I wonder if I’m not the only one slowly slipping away.

Let me paint the picture.  Mr “I think I’m a basketball star” tries to impress everyone on the court with his aerial acrobatics flying haphazardly through a crowd of people towards the basket.  When he misses, which is far more frequent that the makes, he shouts out foul to cover his complete lack of control and ability.  Everyone on the opposing team looks at each other wondering who could have touched this loudmouth, and then of course knowing that they did not, start shooting off derogatory (yet fitting) comments about said court maniac.  His response is to get in the face of anyone opposing him in an obvious attempt to establish dominance as any bully does, even when they know they are wrong.  Tempers flare, at times shoving and even fists fly.  This seems to happen almost as often as the injuries that old guys like me get when trying to play at levels no longer sustainable.

There are perhaps many reasons why this happens with the old guys, but you see it as well in the younger crowds.  Egos ride as high as most can jump, and perhaps higher.  What ever happened to showing a little class on the field/court/whatever?  Sportsmanship – that’s for wimps, at least that seems to be the message most people are getting from professional sports.  This is what I think is the root of the problem.  Case in point, the recent Nuggets/Knicks brawl near the end of the game.  What a bunch of thugs these players showed themselves to be.  I could really care less what these overpaid egos are capable of doing on the court, but for some reason our youth hold them up as role models, so whatever they do gets viewed as the “thing” to do on the local hardtop as well.  I loath these players that have such terrible persona’s, both on and off the court.  Kids look up to them no matter what we do, and they emulate everything they do.

I could create a long list of players, most all of them quite popular to many people, that I just can’t stand to watch.  I will often turn off a game if that player is featured.  I’ll skip the list though, you know who they are, and I would hate to leave one out.  There are a lot of things wrong with modern professional sports, but this is one that I just can’t stand.  I think most people are getting tired of it too as commentators, league officials and most sports sites are decrying the actions when they happen.  It makes news though, so secretly I think the media side of it can’t get enough.

I’ve had enough though.  I’ll still watch an occasional pro football game, but I have all but given up watching pro basketball.  I stick primarily to college games.  They aren’t missing my dollars because I have rarely actually gone to a game – usually I just catch what’s on TV.  I’m just tired of it and would rather turn off the boob tube that catch a game full of these types.  Maybe it’s a good thing (shudder) that I have a bum knee and can’t play basketball anymore; maybe I would just be one of these over competitive guys that make life miserable.  Actually, I know better, I’m a good sport when I play.  Competitive, but I grew out of my tantrum stage back as a kid.  Apparently that stage lasts much longer for the good athletes, so I just don’t know.

Do you, or do you have friends that always say “we” or “us” when referring to their favorite sports team?  I find this most often when people are talking about the team from the college they attended.  Talking about the recent game you hear “Yeah we really played some great defense in that third quarter.”  Or, for an upcoming game, “If we can just move the ball on first down, we have a good chance of winning that bowl game.”

So, did I miss that part of the game when you were on the field?  Do have a place on the sideline next to the coach you haven’t been telling me about?  I didn’t know they let 40 year old out of shape guys on the field these days.  Wow, I’m really impressed now.  Lines such as these are always a great laugh at the expense of the armchair quarterback.

Hey, being a loyal alum is a great thing, and I am glad you are right there into the game each week.  It just cracks me up that you use words like you are actually part of the team.  Schools definitely don’t mind, though, as long as you keep sending in your booster dues, they will get you as close as possible to the team and staff.  Those booster parties that bring in team members and coaches for you to rub shoulders with…they know exactly what they are doing.  You know too, you just enjoy it so much that you are willing to part with the dollars to be there.  So, everyone is happy.

It’s big business, no doubt about it.  Whether college or professional, sports is a not just big business, it’s huge.  Just think of all those talk radio, pre game, post game and all week following shows that debate everything down to the lineman’s hand position when he sets up for the play.  These avid fans eat up every bit of it.  Hey, if we want to win the next game, we have to do the research and know what we are talking about.

Whether you are living in the land of “usetacould” or, more than likely, the land of “never was,” you have your rights.  Hey, if that’s what floats your boat, be happy, I’m all for it.  Just don’t get mad when I am happy making jokes at your expense.  Go team.

A little history is in order.  I used to love playing sports…until I blew out my knee repeatedly and my orthopedic advised me to quit or get a new knee in a couple of years.  It was a crushing blow to me.  I used to play basket ball 3-5 days a week, and now I was relegated to a rousing game of golf.  Golf isn’t so bad, but you get the idea.  A major lifestyle change was forced upon me.  I am competitive by nature, and it doesn’t take much to get my blood pressure rising, so keeping it in check has been a lifelong effort on my part.  With the removal of playing most sports I enjoy from my life, the competitive side hasn’t gone away.  I am all for a competitive match – foosball is the drug of choice in the office these days.  It frustrates me to no end that I am the worst in the office at it by the way.

Back in the college days, I showed up to every home game of every sport I could make time for, especially football, basketball and volleyball matches.  I couldn’t get enough of them.  I’d show up the next day with a hoarse voice and a smile on my face, win or lose.  Never painted myself blue and white, but I brought signs and props to some games, I was in to it.  I didn’t boo the other team though.  I didn’t shout obscenities as they took the field.  I have a sense of sportsmanship, and I have a little perspective in life.  I have met and known many that have no sense of that perspective.  I have had the opportunity to be on the sidelines for a few different teams as staff, photographer, etc. and the things I have heard and seen shouted at the visiting team would astound you.
I just don’t tie my self-image to winning at things like that.  I am no fun for those that want to hit you up on Monday to tell you how much you suck, how your team sucks, and generally berate the worth of anyone supporting your team because their’s happened to win this year.  I just don’t take the bait.  My favorite thing is to actually pick out something good to say about a player on their team and talk about his merits; nothing diffuses an attempted heckler like complimenting their team.

I have a neighbor that graduated from the in state rival (University of Utah), and I have to say he handles the rivalry thing with a lot of fun and tongue in cheek.  I enjoy it.  He definitely roots for his team, but he is the type to pull pranks, jeer a little, but take defeat gracefully as well.  That to me is fun.  Being that he is outnumbered 10 to 1 with the neighbors on which side of the rivalry they fall on, this is probably a good practice.  This year he snuck around the night before the big game and used cement chalk to draw big “U”s in the driveways of all the “Y” fans.  Everyone was surprised but had a great laugh over it.  Needless to say his house was plastered with “Y”s after BYU came out ahead in the last seconds of the game.

Love your school/team/whatever, just realize there is more to life than that big game each year.  Have fun with it, just keep it in the realm of reality.