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Home › Culture wars › Fan reaction.

Fan reaction.

by Jon Lewis
20 years ago
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Compiled from the comments sections of SlamOnline and The Sporting News. A mixture of racism and rationality. Mostly racism.

“For what it?s worth, I don?t think the suspensions will be all that bad ? this wasn?t Detroit, after all. Melo punched Collins, but I bet he gets 5 games, maybe 7 at the most. Raja Bell clotheslined Kobe and got one game. So why would Melo get 10 for landing a punch?”

“This type of thing used to happen all of the time! Dr. J/Bird comes to mind. Imagine if LeBron and DWade went after each other?!!? Stars used to flat-out brawl.
Black eye for the league, yes, but not some monumental catastrophe.”

“Maybe there’s no real parallel to Artest in this brawl, since no one attacked a fan, but JR Smith was Wallace, keeping the jawing going after the foul, and Robinson was Stephen Jackson, just charging wholeheartedly into a fight that wasn’t even his. Well done, moron.”

“
The Knicks seem a little bit like the Miami Hurricanes in football. … You know, a once really proud program with superstars and glory days, but now dwindled down to losing, disappointment, and a big brawl. … Miami made the move to switch the head coach to try to change things. When is New York going to make that same move?”

“How many fights are there in the majority black NBA? One per year? 15 per decade? … What about the two leading “white sports?” MLB & Hockey. These two sports have way more fights & altercations than the NBA. Where is the outrage? Why are these white “thugs” given a free pass from scrutiny.”

“To many wannabe gansters in the NBA…Just shut up and play basketball…Instances like this new Carmelo Anthony brawl are the reason that the NBA is one of the least watched sports in the USA”

“The NBA is not a den of criminals. Give them there fines and suspensions and move on. I have no need to revisit this throughout the year. There is WAY too much good in the NBA to let this drag it down.”

“I am in no way, shape, or form condoning fighting on the court but I couldn’t help but think of hockey and question how a sport that has what seems like one fight per night doesn’t get hit with the whole “group of thugs” label?”

“Ok- Lets hear it- The excuses, the “disrespect” BS et al. This is why I hate the NBA . Punks and Thugs. Thomas has learned nothing since he walked off the court against the Bulls in 1990. Yes, George Karl should not have left his starters in. Give the foul and its over with.”

“Other fans on this post are rigth (sic), this is why NBA ratings are down while more and more are turning to NCAA B-Ball“

“I hate the NBA more and more everyday! I guess it’s true what they say ” You can take the person out of the ghetto but you can’t take the ghetto out of the person”! The NBA is litterd with a bunch of trash especially Carmelo Anthony. I mean the media puts this guy up there as one of the best in the game ( Are you KIDDING ME) and yet he continues to act like a piece of garbage that he is from Baltimore! I’m done with the NBA and it’s garbage from the streets!!!!!!!”

“Without fighting in the stands, no one really cares about the NBA anymore. The regular season drags on, and the players act like they don’t care half of the time. Then, the playoffs are long, boring, and predictable. Not only that, but NBA players now get routinely smoked in international play. If it weren’t for brawls and controversy, this league would generate absolutely no interest. The NBA has become a joke. “

The SportingNews website is where you’ll find most of the closet racists; comments littered with language like ‘punk’, ‘thug’ and ‘ghetto’; comments that you won’t find in relation to any baseball or hockey brawl.

Let the generalizations begin. Somewhere David Duke is smiling. Probably in Iran.

Previous Post

Media reaction.

Next Post

Idle notes.

Jon Lewis

Jon Lewis has been covering the sports media industry on a daily basis since 2006 as the founder and main writer of Sports Media Watch. You can contact him here or on the social media websites X (Twitter) or Bluesky.

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