ducks
11-19-2005, 09:54 AM
Flip side of the brawl
By Steve Kerr, Yahoo! Sports
November 18, 2005
Steve Kerr
Yahoo! Sports Exclusive
One year after perhaps the lowest moment in NBA history – The Brawl at the Palace of Auburn Hills involving the Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons – the league is still making efforts to mend its image.
Commissioner David Stern launched "NBA Cares," a league-wide philanthropic effort to raise as much as $1 billion for charity that will include team and player participation around the world. Also, Stern has instituted a dress code for players in an attempt to give the league a more "professional" look, and players are taking part in a plethora of organized fan friendly programs, from autograph sessions to basketball clinics to school visits.
As a former player, I applaud the NBA and its players for their efforts, but I'm saddened by the fact that this charitable yet image conscious publicity blitz is even necessary.
After all, NBA players and teams have been intimately involved in their communities for years. Whether it was major public charitable projects or small acts of kindness, I have seen hundreds of players give their time and money to try to improve their communities and simply make people feel happy. In Orlando, I watched Shaquille O'Neal take care of waiters and cab drivers with $100 tips. His generosity – and that of dozens of NBA players – was on display during Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, as Shaq donated huge sums of money and devoted his time to the victims.
In Chicago, Michael Jordan used his fame and fortune to build a Boys and Girls Club, where he very quietly took an active interest in the kids' well being. Jordan routinely provided auction items – signed jerseys, balls and shoes – for many of his teammates who were conducting fundraisers and charity events of their own.
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Before home games, he would meet with kids from the Make-A-Wish foundation, laughing and joking with terminally ill kids to give them a precious time of utter joy. These moments were rarely caught on camera because they weren't about publicity – they were simply genuine acts of human kindness.
Another Chicago Bulls teammate, Dennis Rodman, the NBA's bad boy at the time, was actually one of the most generous people I'd ever met. Rodman donated money to charities that dealt with AIDS awareness and domestic violence, but not once did he promote his generosity. Rodman was terrific with children behind the scenes, offering toys and goodies to any child who entered the Bulls' locker room.
In San Antonio, I witnessed David Robinson's efforts to build a private school for underprivileged youth. He spent millions of his own money on the project because he was intent on providing a good education for local kids in an impoverished side of town. At his jersey retirement ceremony two years ago, Robinson's teammates contributed a $100,000 gift to David's cause. Today, the Carver Academy is thriving under the watch of Robinson, who has an active role in running the school, raising funds and helping mold kids' futures.
Even in Portland, where the Trail Blazers were the poster children for everything that was supposed to be wrong with the NBA, I saw many of my teammates make efforts to help the community. Damon Stoudamire made a $250,000 donation to the local school district's sagging athletic budget, ensuring that thousands of kids in his hometown would be able to take part in high school sports. I participated with my Blazer teammates in all kinds of civic events, ranging from serving Thanksgiving meals to the homeless to Christmas tree giveaways for poor families.
Still, despite a league full of players who are involved in community service more than the average American citizen, the NBA's image has suffered in recent years. Certainly some of the reputation is deserved. There are players who are self-absorbed and out of touch with their fans. Some players have been involved in messy legal issues – Kobe Bryant and the rape accusation, for example – and of course, there was the infamous brawl in Detroit during which players and fans alike behaved irresponsibly and criminally.
Yet over the years, the vast majority of NBA players have been good, decent human beings who have cared about their communities. I know, I was there. I witnessed the kind, human spirit that exists in all of us.
In this day and age of information technology, images are formed easily. People's feelings can be shaped by the constant barrage of news. The Indiana-Detroit brawl was a disaster for the NBA because it focused the nation's attention on the worst event in league history. For months, the image of Ron Artest and Stephen Jackson wildly swinging away at Pistons fans kept popping up on our TV screens, each replay bruising the NBA's reputation more and more.
But while America's viewers were inundated with scenes from the brawl, we didn't see much news about Steve Smith donating $2.5 million to Michigan State in his deceased mother's name. We weren't told of Grant Hill and Christian Laettner making huge contributions to their alma mater, Duke. And we certainly didn't see any highlights of David Robinson spending his retirement serving the youth of the city where he became a Hall of Famer.
One year after the brawl, the NBA is still suffering the consequences. The league is doing all it can to improve a battered image, but the fact is, there's plenty of good news in the NBA. You just have to look for it.
Steve Kerr is Yahoo! Sports' NBA analyst. Send him a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast.
By Steve Kerr, Yahoo! Sports
November 18, 2005
Steve Kerr
Yahoo! Sports Exclusive
One year after perhaps the lowest moment in NBA history – The Brawl at the Palace of Auburn Hills involving the Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons – the league is still making efforts to mend its image.
Commissioner David Stern launched "NBA Cares," a league-wide philanthropic effort to raise as much as $1 billion for charity that will include team and player participation around the world. Also, Stern has instituted a dress code for players in an attempt to give the league a more "professional" look, and players are taking part in a plethora of organized fan friendly programs, from autograph sessions to basketball clinics to school visits.
As a former player, I applaud the NBA and its players for their efforts, but I'm saddened by the fact that this charitable yet image conscious publicity blitz is even necessary.
After all, NBA players and teams have been intimately involved in their communities for years. Whether it was major public charitable projects or small acts of kindness, I have seen hundreds of players give their time and money to try to improve their communities and simply make people feel happy. In Orlando, I watched Shaquille O'Neal take care of waiters and cab drivers with $100 tips. His generosity – and that of dozens of NBA players – was on display during Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, as Shaq donated huge sums of money and devoted his time to the victims.
In Chicago, Michael Jordan used his fame and fortune to build a Boys and Girls Club, where he very quietly took an active interest in the kids' well being. Jordan routinely provided auction items – signed jerseys, balls and shoes – for many of his teammates who were conducting fundraisers and charity events of their own.
ADVERTISEMENT
Before home games, he would meet with kids from the Make-A-Wish foundation, laughing and joking with terminally ill kids to give them a precious time of utter joy. These moments were rarely caught on camera because they weren't about publicity – they were simply genuine acts of human kindness.
Another Chicago Bulls teammate, Dennis Rodman, the NBA's bad boy at the time, was actually one of the most generous people I'd ever met. Rodman donated money to charities that dealt with AIDS awareness and domestic violence, but not once did he promote his generosity. Rodman was terrific with children behind the scenes, offering toys and goodies to any child who entered the Bulls' locker room.
In San Antonio, I witnessed David Robinson's efforts to build a private school for underprivileged youth. He spent millions of his own money on the project because he was intent on providing a good education for local kids in an impoverished side of town. At his jersey retirement ceremony two years ago, Robinson's teammates contributed a $100,000 gift to David's cause. Today, the Carver Academy is thriving under the watch of Robinson, who has an active role in running the school, raising funds and helping mold kids' futures.
Even in Portland, where the Trail Blazers were the poster children for everything that was supposed to be wrong with the NBA, I saw many of my teammates make efforts to help the community. Damon Stoudamire made a $250,000 donation to the local school district's sagging athletic budget, ensuring that thousands of kids in his hometown would be able to take part in high school sports. I participated with my Blazer teammates in all kinds of civic events, ranging from serving Thanksgiving meals to the homeless to Christmas tree giveaways for poor families.
Still, despite a league full of players who are involved in community service more than the average American citizen, the NBA's image has suffered in recent years. Certainly some of the reputation is deserved. There are players who are self-absorbed and out of touch with their fans. Some players have been involved in messy legal issues – Kobe Bryant and the rape accusation, for example – and of course, there was the infamous brawl in Detroit during which players and fans alike behaved irresponsibly and criminally.
Yet over the years, the vast majority of NBA players have been good, decent human beings who have cared about their communities. I know, I was there. I witnessed the kind, human spirit that exists in all of us.
In this day and age of information technology, images are formed easily. People's feelings can be shaped by the constant barrage of news. The Indiana-Detroit brawl was a disaster for the NBA because it focused the nation's attention on the worst event in league history. For months, the image of Ron Artest and Stephen Jackson wildly swinging away at Pistons fans kept popping up on our TV screens, each replay bruising the NBA's reputation more and more.
But while America's viewers were inundated with scenes from the brawl, we didn't see much news about Steve Smith donating $2.5 million to Michigan State in his deceased mother's name. We weren't told of Grant Hill and Christian Laettner making huge contributions to their alma mater, Duke. And we certainly didn't see any highlights of David Robinson spending his retirement serving the youth of the city where he became a Hall of Famer.
One year after the brawl, the NBA is still suffering the consequences. The league is doing all it can to improve a battered image, but the fact is, there's plenty of good news in the NBA. You just have to look for it.
Steve Kerr is Yahoo! Sports' NBA analyst. Send him a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast.