LeBron Fined $25K for Being Quietly Upset at Loss
Posted by Steve Fales | Posted in NBA | Posted: June 6, 2009 at 7:11 am
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LeBron James was fined $25,000 by David Stern yesterday for not attending the press conference after James’ Cavaliers were ousted from the Eastern Conference Finals in six games by the Orlando Magic. When I read this story my first reaction was, well, none at all. But then I thought about what transpired over the past week, and it hit me. David Stern is flat-out wrong. LeBron James was “supposed” to go to the NBA Finals for the second time in his career. LeBron was “supposed” to show-down with Kobe for the NBA Title. That didn’t happen. As a result of LeBron carrying his team as far as he could and then crapping out against the Magic, he was emotionally drained. He was passionate and he had a gut reaction to not talk to anybody and leave without going to his press conference. LeBron didn’t shake Dwight Howard’s hand after the game, and that was a poor showing.
This is not an article about whether or not there was poor sportsmanship displayed at the end of that game. The question is, why is everyone so upset that LeBron showed harmless, raw passion? He didn’t swear at anybody, he didn’t gesture towards any fans, he walked off the court and said nothing. This is a man who clearly is not used to losing and can’t stand the feeling of a season-ending loss. Would Stern have preferred it if LeBron had gone to the press conference and blown-up at reporters? Would he have preferred it if LeBron had acted petulantly and embarrassed himself further after his premature exit from the floor? These are the things that would have happened had LeBron gone to the press conference.
The main thing I look for in professional sports is passion. Everybody exhibits passion in different ways; for him, he couldn’t bear the thought of congratulating another team on defeating him. LeBron said the next day, “It’s hard for me to congratulate somebody after you just lose to them. I mean, I’m a winner. That’s not being a poor sport or anything like that. Somebody beat you up, you’re not going to congratulate them on beating you up.” Did this quote not satiate David Stern’s appetite for LeBron-media face-time? This is clearly a man who was trying to recover from a very disappointing end of the season. He didn’t want to go to the press conference, because he was so sorely disappointed. Fining LeBron James $25,000 proves nothing to him, as he’s infinitely rich, and it proves nothing to the fans. I guarantee that if he loses in a similar fashion next year, LeBron will react in the same way. This is just another instance in which David Stern has to “lay down the law” with players earning 15 times his salary. Is it just to maintain order? No, its just to maintain the illusion of order. Hey Stern, remember…”The NBA, where caring happens”.
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I see your points here and it’s a tough situation although I’m still unconvinced. here’s an article I wrote that presents the other side of the coin:
http://thebleacherbums.wordpress.com/2009/06/06/the-king-hit-with-25k-fine-after-snubbing-reporters-and-magic/
“You don’t congratulate somebody after they beat you up.” Really? I guess the MMA athletes got it wrong, eh? Well, any professional athlete worth his salt knows the basic, fundamental rule of any sport is sportsmanship. Shaking the hand of your opponent acknowledges the fact that your competitor also brought intensity and passion to the game. It’s a rudimentary rule followed by anybody who has good manners and right conduct. Of course, if we were talking about being raised in the wilds…
I just don’t see what obligation LeBron has to the media immediately after his season is over. I’d rather have someone be really pissed at losing than just give a boring press conference after a loss, go home and not give a damn cause he makes millions of bucks every year.
its a contract he signs – he must attend post game press conferences …if players didn’t have to go to those things, then they wouldn’t haha
also the 25k obviously wouldn’t make a dent in his wallet, but it serves as a message to other players and viewers (especially the younger ones) that it’s not the right thing to do.
Check out this side of the story:
http://thebleacherbums.wordpress.com/2009/06/06/the-king-hit-with-25k-fine-after-snubbing-reporters-and-magic/
Since when did everyone become such a stickler on the promptness of media acknowledgment? He addressed the media the next day and answered all of the questions. It just seems irrelevant to me that he skipped the press conference because the media got its interview less than 12 hours later.
“Well, any professional athlete worth his salt knows the basic, fundamental rule of any sport is sportsmanship.”
Sportsmanship? This is not a sportsmanship issue. Attending a press conference is not a sign of sportsmanship. Its simply an indication that an NBA player can follow arbitrary rules set up to protect the media’s interest. So when a player doesn’t show up, Stern fines him because it belittles the rule that is in place. He was just saving face.
1. It’s part of the contract each athlete signs – if you want your millions of dollars a year to play a game you love when everyone else in the world is making peanuts to do jobs they often don’t like, then the least you can do is honor all parts of your contract – even when you don’t want to. When you’re talking about athletes who make the kind of money James makes, you’re not going to get a whole lot of sympathy from average joes – especially in this economy.
Personally, I think that the Premiership should have something similar in their contract with players and managers. It’s ridiculous that managers like SAF can get away with refusing to speak with the BBC sports division because of a beef he had with the news division years ago. He’s not hurting the BBC by refusing to speak with the media – he depriving the fans. When I;m watching Match of the Day, I don’t want to hear the assistant manager talk right after Liverpool beats ManU 4-1, I want the joy of listening to Fergie have to explain what happened.
2. James is one of the best players in the league and looked up to by millions of kids. What he does on and off the court tells millions of budding basketball players what it’s okay to do. If he’s allowed to walk off the court without shaking anyone’s hand and then refuses to honor his contract to speak with the media, then that sends a message to young superstars that they can break their obligations too. Trust me – kids watch EVERYTHING that adult role models do, whether those adults realize it or not, and the behavior of the adult role model matters.
Oh please, with this kids thing. Steve has a totally valid point, a man is allowed to be upset after a very painful loss and not shake peoples’ hands. Shaking peoples’ hand is a totally bullshit “sportsmanship” thing that was invented so little kids could go through lines after a game and go “good game… good game… good game… good game.” As someone who used to do that, I know for a fact no one even meant it or gave a shit about saying “good game” to people that you didn’t know or may even hate with a passion. You wanna know what sportsmanship is? Sportsmanship is respecting your opponent. Sportsmanship is not doing bitch moves like hitting a guy for no reason or making a 3 when you’re up by 30. Sportsmanship is NOT about shaking hands, it’s about playing the game as hard as you can and respecting your opponent. A man is allowed to be upset after a tough loss.