For those who have a sense of sports history who are over, say, 40, the response of the Indiana Pacers fans to Reggie Miller in his last game against the Pistons in the playoffs this spring was at least a little heartwarming.
The ‘disconnect’ between many professional athletes and the public seems to grown by the day, and the issue is not as simple as the ‘revelations’ (as though we didn’t know) steroids in baseball. It has been building for years and goes much deeper than that.
Why is there a disconnect? Well, the reasons are many and everyone reading this could add their own thoughts and plug in a reason or two.
Among many other things, we don’t see many athletes retire with the same team they started with, especially after 18 seasons.
There aren’t many Bill Russells’ left in basketball, as there are few Al Kalines’ in baseball or Jean Beliveaus’ in hockey — individuals who played the game at such a high level, and left the game with their reputation unsoiled and their dignity intact after playing their entire (lengthy) careers in one city.
The lack of “loyalty” to one’s team is not itself in itself to kill the traditional bond between athlete and player. And there have always been some players who didn’t much care about the fans.
But many other factors have crept into sport as well.
NHL players, for example, are fighting a battle to salvage a gravy train that should have — in the minds of most fans — been shut down years ago.
NBA players seem destined for a similar fate, apparently unhappy (at least the most powerful agents in the sport are) at the mere thought that if NBA owners had their way, ridiculously-long guaranteed contracts might be a thing of the past.
I mean, who wouldn’t want 18 million dollars a year for 7 years, instead of ‘only’ 5, for example.
Yes, the tongue is planted firmly in my cheek as I write this.
It’s also hard to miss the daily reports of “unhappiness” around the NFL. Edgerrin James skips mandatory mini-camp with the Colts, displeased with the fact that he can only earn 8 million dollars this coming season because he was placed under the team’s ‘restrictive’ franchise tag.
Granted, it is hard to plan for your family’s financial future when your team won’t give you all the millions you want for as many years as you want.
There’s the tongue again.
Eagles’ receiver Terrell Owens — while demanding to have his contract re-worked only one year into a seven-year deal he gladly signed — is quoted as saying he is concerned about feeding his family.
These examples of — what can we call it, politely?— a lack of perspective are obviously way to many to number here.
But the fans are left numb.
I wasn’t quite born when Joe Dimmagio retired in 1951, and I don’t doubt he tried to make as much money as he could, but somehow, players such as he, Mantle, Berra, Ford and many other Yankee greats were closer to the hearts of the fans of yesteryear than today’s Arod-style one-man corporations are.
Until some athletes stop thinking about getting more and more, and agents stop demanding more and more, and ownership stops capitulating constantly to ridiculous demands, the disconnect will grow.
No hockey, who cares?
No baseball. We all survived.
No basketball next season. We’ll get used to it.
No football in a couple of years?
Hey, replacement players worked the last time, in the 1980’s. The players quickly realized the sports world could and would go on without them.
What player, in which sport, is going to be a real leader and show the fans that athletes are not only about making millions and forever wanting more and more?
Yes indeed, Joe, where have you gone?
