One would have a hard time denying that greed isn't a big factor in the NBA as well as most all other professional sports, and I for one feel no sympathy for any of them. I grew up in a time when professional athletes were mostly like everyone else. They just made a living by playing a game that they loved, they thrived on competition and the glory of the win, and they were paid for it besides. The owners in the same mind-set loved the game, and they made a little money for themselves and the stockholders, and most everyone was happy but maybe not filthy rich.
I grew up with a basketball in my hand, and I don't know of many sports I haven't played or been involved in. The current state of affairs in professional sports and in particular the NBA has made me sick and to think that these poor souls are trying to glean sympathy because they are losing millions of dollars in salaries for playing a game, yes a game, people, is beyond my comprehension.It's like trying to understand light years and time travel. I maintain that you can't put all the blame on the jocks or the owners. We are the greedy ones. We have such an appetite for sports in this country and want so much to be identified with sports that we are willing to pay any price for the privilege of being seen there, wearing it, eating it, drinking it or driving it, that we have been duped into thinking we can't live without it. We are the ones who are in control. Why not send a message to the leagues that enough is enough. Boycott the games for a while, don't fill the stadiums, don't watch the TV and don't buy the products.
It's hard to have heroes when they hide behind dollar signs, and it's hard to be a role model when off the court you continue to whine about bad contracts and needing to make more money, but in the immortal words of one of our NBA players, it's not about money but the principle of the thing. Ha.
C.D. Johnson
Springville