Racism in the NBA?

[Cheatachu72]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=1387&e=6&u=/ap/20050412/ap_on_sp_bk_ne/bkn_pacers_o_neal_racism&sid=95747870

:hee:

discuss.........

[flipn0tic]

Ugh... don't play that card, JO...

[mcurtiss1970]

the age limit is partially to prevent the older players from getting pushed off of roster spots by younger and younger ones right? that part doesn't seem racist.

[jsmithwick]

"As a black guy, you kind of think that's the reason why it's coming up. You don't hear about it in baseball or hockey. To say you have to be 20, 21 to get in the league, it's unconstitutional. If I can go to the U.S. army and fight the war at 18, why can't you play basketball for 48 minutes?"

Maybe if he had stayed in school, he'd know that an age limit in the NBA is not a constitutional issue. The constitution (as I read it) doesn't address dropping out of school to play basketball. He's a good player and all, don't get me wrong...but, he should read up before he makes that kind of comment. Outrageous or incorrect claims can only hurt his side of the argument.

[mcurtiss1970]

i love the fact that Freddy Adu is playing soccer....so why do i not like high schoolers playing in the NBA? tradition?

[usfhett03]

but, he should read up before he makes that kind of comment. Outrageous or incorrect claims can only hurt his side of the argument.

If he went to college, he would have probably known to do that.

[speedpro50]

I think the racism comment is unfounded. In the NBA most of the early draft picks are african american and that is how it has been and will continue to be. It has nothing to do with race, or trying to keep them out.

I think the NBA needs a minor league personally, similar to Baseball!

[MsRandall]

I think that if you look at the statistics the high school kids that would adversely affected by this age policy would be African American. I have a problem with an age limit on basketball when the army, navy air force sergents can call my son to try to get him to sign up to go fight for his country 1.5 months before he graduates (Not bashing the military in anyway as I have generations of military in my family) but he cant make a decision to either go to college or go in the NBA.

Would the policy be racist??? Perrsonally I believe the motives are certainly flawed. Just my 56 cents.

This issue is very personal to me as my son is a highly regarded basketball player

[Yummi]

I think high schoolers should not be allowed to join the NBA. Period. They take these boys and put them in an adult situations and expect them to thrive like adults and make adult decisions when they do not have the capability to do so. I think an age limit is necessary to make sure these boys have something to fall back on when the NBA dream turns into a nightmare.

I do not thinks its racist, I think its good business. Just my 3 cents.

[MsRandall]

So sis is it okay for a 18 year old to join the military?

Even more so...what if a kid doesnt have what it takes to go to college....has a 2.0 and doesnt do well on the SAT...do we say oh you have to go to community college you cant go play NBA basketball and make millions because you are too young??? Do we say you are too young and cant handle this when Lebron, Kobe, Jermaine, etc have done well ??

If a 18 year old can go fight for his country and die defending this country he should be able to play a game and perhaps provide for his family.....IMO.

If we are going to stop letting minors in the pro leagues without attending college ...lets stop them from going pro in tennis, golf, etc too ....

[fever]

Calling something "unconstitutional" is currently very trendy, and usually has no basis in reality. While an age MINIMUM (since that's a better way to label it) might have an adverse effect that could be construed as racist, I'm sure the impetus for such a clause in the labor agreement was the exact opposite. While it is true that many "African-American" males do not go to college after high school, it's probably true that equal portions of other ethnicites also don't go to college after high school, or at least not directly. What would be really bad is if the Labor Agreement contained a clause that wouldn't let any who HADN'T attended college play in the NBA. I couldn't see anyone signing anything like that, though, because it's simply "Bad for Business". I personally think that the Labor Agreement only needs an "Above 18" clause, nothing more. I suppose if they were trying to lower the minimum to 16, this could be more of an issue.

f

I'm really pissed that an 18 year old can join the military, but can't drink in *THIS* country. Federal law should make age 18 and up Military I.D. holders able to drink alcohol legally.

[Yummi]

So sis is it okay for a 18 year old to join the military?

No, I dont think thats fair either. I also dont necessarily agree with the ROTC for that matter; brainwashing 15 year olds that the military is great and it will pay for college, which is not always the case.

The problem is some would say 18 years old is an adult and they should have the right to make an adult decision, however, at 17, coming out of high school, I do not think it is a wise decision to choose education over money, because when the money is gone, what do you have to show for it? Some shoes, a couple of jersey's? Taking teenagers and tossing dollar signs at them with people who are not looking out for their best interest is wrong.

[MsRandall]

The same thing can be said for college...the college gets paid, the stands are filled, the money is flowing everywhere but into the college basketball players hands when a large majority of them dont receive the college degree in the end anyway.....

[Yummi]

True, but they do get the scholarships, which may not be money in the hand, but its not money out of their pocket either.

[fever]

True, but that's becoming frowned upon, now... I'm sure scholarships will always exist, but free rides to school for playing ball? Schools are going to really start re-thinking those policies once they get on watch lists.

f

[2pac]

I'm stealing this from someone, but it really pertains. This is not an issue of black, white, blue,yellow, red, the issue here is green which metaphorically stands for money. Many HS players (there are exceptions) take a couple of years to develop and don't really have an impact in their first couple of years. Without getting in to details, for as many exceptions to that principle, I can name you double that # of players who took 2-3 years to contribute.

GM's are judging guys based on potential instead of achievements, instead of drafting these guys and teaching them fundamentals allow them to go to college for 1 year and if they're that good I would let them enter the draft. Look at a guy like Rick Pitino, he spent 2 years recruiting hometown star Sebastian Telfair, he got the commitment but then goes to the NBA.

I have opinions on both sides, but I think guys should go to college for at least 1 year.

[Noodle]

I don't agree with the military comments mainly because I don't agree with the way the military goes about recruting.... however they at least in ways give structure and what not. These kids going into the NBA have gone from their bigest worries being menial jobs and who the cutest girl in school is to making 100's of thousands to millions of dollars.

Get a little of real life under your belt. Hell if I was playing major ball, hockey, golf, etc right out of high school and had no plan after that I would be screwed if I blew out my knee, elbow, anything really.

I do have to say I agree with Yummz for the most part on this one. Ms Randall does have some points too though.

[leaving_ash]

"As a black guy, you kind of think that's the reason why it's coming up. You don't hear about it in baseball or hockey..." Uhhh aren't there black dudes that play baseball and white dudes that play basketball? As for hockey...is there still a professional hockey league? I know there is a special line at the unimployment office for those guys but whatever. I don't think the comment was well thought out and kinda seems like it was taken out of context. Regardless, I don't rely heavily on professional sports players for bottomless wells of wisdom. It might have just been a secondary speculation.

I can't play basketball. As a white guy, you would think the reason is because I'm white. I tried out for the pistons but I tripped on my shoe laces and got a bloody nose. Everyone laughed and after practice they threw their jock straps at me. Clearly, I was wronged. I think the NBA's stance on keeping people who can't play basketball off the court is racially motivated. [/sarcasm]

Get a little of real life under your belt. Hell if I was playing major ball, hockey, golf, etc right out of high school and had no plan after that I would be screwed if I blew out my knee, elbow, anything really.

I dunno. I don't see how it would hurt anyone to be involved in sports on the pro level if they can produce and keep people in the seats. Fine, you lose a knee and can't play anymore. You still made a sh*t-ton more money then I did last year (April 15th is Friday people). Its probably enough to last you through a 4-8 year college program if you're smart. PhD's aren't free and better if you can focus 100% on studies. If you want to do your players a service then remind them of the future by providing financial advice or pay some of the salary into trusts.

Lets get real. Not everyone gets to go to college. Some people take time off, some join the service, work, smoke a lot of pot and get kicked out, etc etc. There is plenty of time for working, for making plans, and there is plenty of time for college. I say play hard, save some money, blow out those knees, and live the dream while you can. Hey commissioner, its just a game.

[imtravis]

Noodle has a good point (I'm thinking a similiar thought). Right out of high school, most kids don't have much life experience. They'll be swayed by the $$ (who wouldn't), but if something happens to them, they might not have anything to fall back on. I think the age thing is to help the older guys keep playing, and possibly to help the younger guys get something to fall back on. As for the military, I do have a problem with the way they try to recruit. Again, I think someone should have at least a year or two out of highschool (or better yet, make it 21), before they join the armed forces. I figure, if you're legal to drink (in Ca, the age is 21), then you should be able to go fight for your country. At 18, I think most kids still don't have the life experience they need. Some kids, however (my brother in law being one of them), need the military at 18 to help them grow up.

Just my $.01 (I'm not quite awake yet).

[jgallandt]

Wirelessly posted (Sanyo MM7400: Mozilla/4.0 (MobilePhone MM-7400/US/1.0) NetFront/3.1 MMP/2.0)

I think Yummi is right on the money here. No pun intended. A scholarship is a great way to get an education, especially with the price of collage today. You don't have to major in rocket science. ;) Just need to find a subject that is interesting to them. And don't give me a person might not be smart enough. Basketball is more then just making a 20 foot jump shot. It takes brains too. Same with football. The difference is desire. Not brains.

[Yummi]

some really good point have been made here. in theend, its about swaying those with nothing with the promise of lots of money. thats it. ure 18, parents make a decent living, but the nba is waving 3.5 mil over 5 years at u. at 18 what do you do? you take the money. so now we are at 700k a year before taxes and accountants and bills. and then you get hurt 2 years in. do you get the remainder of your money? hell no. do you have any skill to fall back on now that your nba dream is a nightmare? no.

i mean, remember that nba guy that was killed in a car accident, leaving behind a wife and new baby? she got nothing, because he had not fulfilled his contract. those numbers sound good, but why are we enticing these kids with money and then not making sure they can do something when basketball is over? a player was recently fined for missing a practice so that he could walk the stage to graduate college. what are we teaching these kids? ugh, im disgusted, i need some pudding......

[He Love Me]

I feel that the parents should push getting a good education harder instead of sports. Why are the kids making bad grades but yet the they're still rewarded for failure, not saying Ms Randall or anyone else is doing that. I'm an african american and education is not on the top of the list for some of us. Yeah we can always make excuses for some of these kids but the bottom line is that basketball, football etc...... is not the only job in life that someone can achieve. Just my 2 cents.

[MsRandall]

I think you have to live in unrealistic world if you believe every student can go to college after high school and be successful. In many parts of the country the drop rate is shocking. My husband and I both have secondary degrees...However my mother and my father do not. They worked really hard and are successful. They wanted nothing less than college degrees for their daughters all 5 of them...2 of my sisters have degress. My sons knows I am very much for completing college however I cant say that everyone has to go to college to be successful...everyone doesnt have that dream....I think it wrong to force someone to go to college before going pro....

The same question can be asked about all the college players who died on the court of heart failure and their family that has nothing but maybe a pre game show where they paraded his family around and talked about how great he was....or if he blows out his knee maybe he will have a degree and make 50,000 a year as a teacher....this is an individual choice and should have a policy attached to it....

Although my son has intent to sign with a major college with a full basketball scholarship ....I cant say what he chose is right for all the other high school senior basketball players.

This is just my opinion and on this subject I realize there is another side....

[He Love Me]

You make great points. I'm mainly pointing the fingers at the parents who don't care about their child's ability to read and write instead focusing on their ability to get a contract, shoe deal, or what's in it for them. Some of those kids are still reading on a 3rd or 4th grade level. Cant blame the system because there too many resources out there to help out so everything has to go back to the home. College is not for everyone but at least point out to them that there are other alternatives to sports-which you are doing and i commend you on that. Keep up the good work!!!! We need more men and women like you and your husband

[icsedge1]

i've got an idea...forget the age rule, they should have these:
to get into the NBA you have to:
1. know what the word 'defense' is.
2. know how to shoot a jump shot - preferably at 42% or higher.
3. be able to shoot free throws at 80% or higher.

then maybe, just maybe, we could start winning gold medals at the various international tourneys again. soccer...that's the sport europeans are supposed to beat us at.

sedge

[goodiemob]

i've got an idea...forget the age rule, they should have these:
to get into the NBA you have to:
1. know what the word 'defense' is.
2. know how to shoot a jump shot - preferably at 42% or higher.
3. be able to shoot free throws at 80% or higher.

then maybe, just maybe, we could start winning gold medals at the various international tourneys again. soccer...that's the sport europeans are supposed to beat us at.

sedge
over 90% of attendees at NBA games are white,that is a fact,how many white players go to nba out of highschool?the age limit is racially motivated,alot of white fans resent the players b/c they make so much money,but ppl tend to 4get there was a time when the nba was mostly white.remember the brawl?they were calling the black players thugs.

[Cheatachu72]

so now we are at 700k a year before taxes and accountants and bills. and then you get hurt 2 years in. do you get the remainder of your money? hell no. do you have any skill to fall back on now that your nba dream is a nightmare? no.


I used to think about that too, but then I look at how much I will be spending for my 4 years at a wonderful university (GO BADGERS!) and my total comes out to:

Tuition: 4 years at ~$7,000/year=~$28,000
Rent: 4 years at $5000/year=~$20,000

total for 4 years $48,000

if I played in the NBA for just 1 year, I should have the cash to go back to school regardless if I am making the league minimum and get cut after 1 year. I know it is a lot to ask that the players have SOME fiscal responsibility, but I dont have rich parents paying for my college, I dont have a full ride because I cant throw a ball through a hoop better than someone else. I somehow am coming up with the money, someone who made 700k in one year should be able to do the same.

[mcurtiss1970]

the funny thing is that the Player's Union will likely back the age limit. For every LeBron, there's an aging utility player losing a roster spot.

[Vizi]

Is there an age limit for any other Pro Sport? How old (on average) do tennis players turn pro. Are all young men who are looked at as ready for Pro Basketball, smart enough for college? These are all questions that people should ask before coming to any conclusion.

[lwcoffer2]

my things is i pay to see the best people on the court...i dont care how old they are.

and adding a age limit has nothing to do with race