Response to J.A. Adande

In reading L.A. Times sports columnist J.A. Adande’s most recent post on his blog, it appears that the NBA can still not shed itself of the recent hip-hop, gangster image, as it prepares for All-Star Weekend in Las Vegas.

In his post, Adande quotes Las Vegas mayor Oscar Goodman: "I don't want to see some gangbangers or hip-hoppers knocking over a jewelry store at Fashion Show mall."

Adande is also quick to mention that these comments came from the same man who animatedly said that Las Vegas deserved a basketball team. He then refers back to when the All-Star game came to Los Angeles and mentions that there was only one crime that could have possibly been associated with the event

This post reflects how the NBA, no matter what it tries to do to change its image, such as implementing a dress code, cannot shake itself of the gangster, hip-hop image. The media and the NBA itself have contributed to a skewed view of the players in the league.

The NBA brought hip-hop upon itself by using hip-hop songs in its ads. This ended a few years ago but they have yet to recover. Sports media also jumps on anything related to NBA players that would be considered violent. Let’s face it, news media likes violence. Violence plays a part in at least one story on any nightly newscast. The viewers must like it, too, or else networks wouldn’t show it.

When Indiana Pacer Steven Jackson fired a gun outside a nightclub, it was the lead story on ESPN. Jackson was also was part of the Pacer/Pistons/fans brawl in 2005 and that didn’t help him any. ESPN spent a solid two weeks on the aftermath of that story. It then highlighted subsequent games between the teams as “the first match-up since the brawl.”

In late 2006, when the Knicks and Nuggets got into a brawl, it was once again the lead story on ESPN and was covered by all the major news stations. Yes, brawls are bad. Yes, guns are bad. However, a person shouldn’t pass judgment on a whole league for the actions of a few individuals.

On most TV broadcasts of NBA games, the NBA advertises its “NBA Cares” program, which shows the players going out and helping in the community. However, on a sports news show, the producer will rarely decide to run a story on the good deeds of an NBA player or any other professional athlete. The second something awful happens, it becomes news. However, it seems that something has to be “remarkably” good for it to become news.