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The Sour Grapes of the NBA

I feel obligated to conclude the Suns post from Wednesday with the taste of sour grapes in my mouth and a rotten feeling in my gut. Friday night the Suns lost the playoff series to the Spurs and I am so depressed and angry that this morning I entered receipts into my budget book instead of writing—a clear sign of just how disturbed I am right now. But it is not just because the Suns lost, it is more than that.

Wherever there is an investment there is a relationship. Basketball takes an investment of my precious time and limited money. In return I expect to be dazzled by talent and athleticism; entertained with drama from game to game and season to season; and lured along by the hope of the euphoric elation of ultimately winning a championship. I do realize I may never live to enjoy this elation, but I accept this on one condition: the result of the game is decided by the players, not the officiating or the NBA’s decisions. I am not making excuses, the Suns made some mistakes and lost what was left of the series based on these mistakes. But a combination of officiating and the NBA’s interpretation of their rules put the Suns in a position where they had to play nearly perfect basketball (there is a saying that the best team wins a best-of-7 series, but because of the decisions from the NBA’s league office, it was impossible to truly have a 7-game series). I will accept injuries and mistakes, but not poor officiating and inconsistent enforcement of rules. Relationships are based on trust. I trust the Suns to play their hearts out—I have no question about their integrity—but I do not trust the NBA’s governing officials and without trust, it is difficult to maintain a relationship. And because the NBA has more control over the game than the players do, if I do not trust the NBA, I cannot trust the game, and therefore, may choose to disengage from this relationship in the future. This unfortunate for the Suns, but it is beyond their control.

As I am writing this it occurs to me that what I have learned from the NBA is nice guys don’t win championships. This is life; this is basketball. It is unfair, but it is just how it is. I have felt this way about the NBA before, but never this sour. Next season I will engage with caution, or maybe not at all. Either way, it won’t take much to lose me. There are far too many better things to do in life than to invest my time and money on a relationship without trust.

END
© 2007 Christian Cloud Abraham

Posted on May 20, 2007 in
Emotion: Disgust, Type: Essay