Yesterday The NBA levied $250K fine to the San Antonio Spurs for not playing the stars against the Miami Heat during a nationally televised game last Thursday. NBA Commissioner David Stern was quoted saying "The Spurs decided to make four of their top players unavailable for an early season game that was the team's only regular-season visit to Miami. The team also did this without informing the Heat, the media, or the league office in a timely way. Under these circumstances, I have concluded that the Spurs did a disservice to the league and our fans." Apparently the Spurs were in violation of league policy against resting players in a manner "contrary to the best interests of the NBA." Resting players no matter what the sport has always been debatable. But can anyone blame Greg Popovich when Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili are in their 30's and injury prone. What bugs me though is the wording of the policy– "Contrary to the best interests of the NBA!" That's code for "You're messing with my/our money!"
Everyone knows that sports is big business. The NBA, NFL, MLB, etc. aren't just selling tickets to games anymore. They are selling a brand, an image, and or a experience that seemingly has nothing to do with actual athletic competition. Fantasy sports, TV, and stadiums/arenas are all meant to keep consumers (not necessarily fans) engaged. You're not watching the San Antonio Spurs play the Miami Heat, your watching LeBron James play Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginobilli. But if Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginobilli don't play there's still going to be a basketball game. While NBA TV ratings might be little down because of lack of star power (What!? LeBron James wasn't enough!). You can't gloss over the fact that 19,703 people bought tickets for what turned out to be a competitive game.
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