Probably most of us who are Clutch posters make somewhere between $30-$60K a year (assuming we're old enough to have a job). Not many Rockets season ticket holders either, I would imagine. When a decent seat (when you can get one)costs a minimum $100, it becomes pretty pricey to watch the action live. But we don't have a problem spending somebody else's money when it comes to "suggesting" that the Rockets sign this player or that. And then wonder why the hell they didn't. "A bargain at $5 mil!" "We should sign that unproven high schooler; shouldn't cost more than 3 or 4 mil." "So-and-so deserves to make $9 Mil, after all he averaged 10 points and 8 rebounds and stayed out of jail." "He's 6'8" and was just terrific scoring points, blocking shots, and rebounding in New Jersey 3A last year" (never mind there wasn't anybody in 3A was taller than 6'4"). This whole sports salary thing has gotten out of proportion. I remember Mickey Mantle being chastised for holding out for $100K. In today's money that wouldn't even be a million. And some .250 banjo hitter, or pine warmer during the winter, deserves the salaries they ask for today? Today's athlete signs a eight or nine figure contract, then cops out with a minor injury or doesn't produce or both. Give me a break! Maybe it really is supply and demand - with the dilution in all three major American sports, that's probably not far from being right. The day is not far off where we will either be unable to afford to see a game in person, or there'll be so many commercials on "free TV", the game will only be a distraction. Maybe they'll start selling advertising space on team jersys, ala Australia and Europe. Can you imagine what some star struck CEO would pay to have his company's logo prominently displaed on the game ball. TV timeout number 17 brought to you by (national or egional beer brewer)! ------------------ "Who Wants To Be A Rocket?" - and probably a millionaire as well. The off-season will be interesting!
There will be no "Free TV" in about 10 years. Everything will be PPV (pay per view) You can get good seats (upper prom) for $20-$40. There really isn't a bad seat in the Laptop. I hope the prices don't change too much for the new arena. At the rate Baseball is going, look for teams like the twins, royals, brewers to either fold or be sold. These small market teams cannot compete with the big spending teams (yankees, braves, dodgers) The rich just keep getting richer. p.s. This should be in the hangout forum. ------------------ "When your dead, anything's funny."-John Lennon
Nice post Bobby and Mr Finn* with that PS I think you have been hanging out with the Mango way toooo much. ------------------ Stuff BBS, the Rockets and you guys It's all Clippers these days, come join the bandwagon and visit http://www.ClippersCity.net
Just trying to keep the order smeg, as Clutch must be away on vacation seeing how he hasn't changed the startup page in about a week ------------------ "When your dead, anything's funny."-John Lennon
or maybe their is just no news, only thing he really could have put on the front page would have been that Smeg had multiple threads with mega replys. ------------------ Stuff BBS, the Rockets and you guys It's all Clippers these days, come join the bandwagon and visit http://www.ClippersCity.net
Look it is a free market economy, I don't mind the players making what they can. I will watch the games on Direct TV, those are free, and satisfy my fandom. DaDakota ------------------
<hr>I remember Mickey Mantle being chastised for holding out for $100K. In today's money that wouldn't even be a million.<hr> It wasn't even a million back then either ------------------ C'mon, lets get Chuck that ring. [This message has been edited by Chuck04 (edited July 10, 2000).]
Jeez, I'm so sick and tired of hearing people whine about how much athletes make. If it's so incredible, why the hell do you even watch? If it upsets you that much, why force yourself to watch these overpaid primadonnas, and then take the time to go to a website and post about it. You'd probably be much happier if you just read a book or something. Oh wait, the authors probably make too much as well. Anyway, just sit in a dark room and sulk. ------------------ Just because you're white and play basketball doesn't mean you're a Matt Bullard clone, despite idiotic accusations to the contrary. visit www.swirve.com
I'm all for the free market economy. Hey, if some bloke is willing to pay out $5 million dollars for an 19 year old who can dunk a basketball but can't write his own name, go for it! It may be stupid, but pro sports owners have never been noted for making intelligent decisions. Greed is still the dominating emotion on both sides, with us fans in the middle. Maybe they ought to bring back the old one year contract at a time process - a gamble for both sides, but with free agency, fair for all. (Kagy or Clutch - you should probably move this thread elsewhere, like Hangout) My point is - pro sports is going to be eventually cost prohibitive for the average fan. And I don't think it'll take ten years for either free TV to dry up or for the owners to figure out how to block the satellite services. The foreign leagues and teams will start popping for even bigger bucks (or lira or francs or whatever) to draw more of the name players and improve their play (if you've ever seen an Australian ABL game - sorry Smeg - you'd know that's a fact). All the major team sports are going in the same direction - applying the 80-20 rule. 20% of the roster gets 80% of the dollars, while the remaining 80% fights for the remaining 20%. You've got a couple of stars and a ton of utility players. The game suffers, the quality of a championship is diluted, owners will become even more frustrated, players will have less loyalty than exists today (which ain't much!), the fans will finally realized that the owners and players have been screwing them for years, and we'll all become Rugby fans (NRL rules, not that weird Australian Rules Football they play in the South). ------------------ "Who Wants To Be A Rocket?" - and probably a millionaire as well. The off-season will be interesting!
I like to exercise my right to express my opinion - just like you do. Besides, I've been a Rocket and NBA fan longer than most of you. I've seen the League grow and mature from the years when Fort Wayne and Rochester were major NBA forces to where it is today. And I just think the pay scale has gotten out of hand. That's my opinion. I do read a lot, RM95 - it helps me develop a more complete perspective of not only sports, but of many other subjects as well - as opposed to hanging around this BBS trying to see if I can match 1000 posts, many of which are inane. ------------------ "Who Wants To Be A Rocket?" - and probably a millionaire as well. The off-season will be interesting!
It means that something is lacking substance. Or is empty. Great use of the word in that post. See, I too read. ------------------
For Christmas my dad took me to my first Rockets game... He paid 45 bucks per ticket for seats on the very top row. Thats too damn much. When I went to see the Spurs play in their championship season you could get real close to the court for that much. ------------------ The Chuckwagon came, saw, and threw people through windows!
I really doubt if most sport events will go to PPV. PPV eliminates advertisers, which is where the networks get their money. Only for Big Events can people count on consistently attracting a big audience. I could see the Super Bowl going to PPV, but I think that is unlikely just because so many advertisers are willing to pay so much $$$ to be seen. Boxing & the TV wrestling are the exceptions. Wresting is obvious because advertisers don't really want to align themselves with a fake sport. Boxing has had ups & downs with PPV. You may see more of what they did with College Football last year. Offering to show games outside of the region for a feee that you usually coundn't see on cable. But I doubt PPV will ever be the norm in the major sports (MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL). As far as players salaries we are responsible. If we quit watching advertisers won't pay so much, their will be less ticket revenues, less apparrel sales and herefore less money to go around (owners & players). Also don't let the owners fool you into thinking they ared losing money. Most owners realize they may loose money up until the point they sell the franchise. So the owners aren't afraid to overpay players to build up the franchise. ------------------
Die you capitalist pigs! ------------------ "Stranger things have happened, but none stranger than this" - Commentator after a parachutist landed in the ring of a Holyfield fight
Good topic that belongs in the Hangout Forum. Anyway, not only are athletes paid outrageous amounts of money, but so are people in show business. The thing is entertainment is a cash cow. Athletes make alot of money because they are tall, large, quick, strong, etc. The owners for years were getting over big time on the players and now the money is being spread around, although not very evenly. Same goes for movie stars. $20 million for a movie!!? I understand why people may get upset about it. While teachers and public servants(ie. police) are barely getting by, these people are making millions. The point is as long as the world is willing to pay for entertainment, the performers will keep raking it in. ------------------ We need some meat in the post and I don't mean Brian Grant!
Bobby, Are you speaking from a position of authority when you claim "a decent seat (when you can get one)costs a minimum $100"? Maybe for a "prima donna" who expects too much thats what decents seats cost. I happen to be season ticket holder, and my seats are 4th row from the back in the corner. I could easily get a better view from home (for free) but I'd much rather be at the game abosorbing the entire experience, lucky enough to see amazing athletes like Hakeem Olajuwon at work. I also happen to know that $10 seats were available at almost every game last year(if you plan ahead) - not lower prom by any stretch, but I guess it depends on what you value the most. Why is everyone so unhappy about what players salaries are and how much it costs to go to a game? It is a free market for goodness sake. Many CEOs all the way down to middle managers all earn ludicrous salaries at the expense of shareholders but you don't see anyone complaining about them. Athletes take the rap because they are high profile and, and not always "adequately equipped" to maintain a pleasant public image. If you want to see the best in the world perform, you will have to pay top dollar. The fact that I can see them for only $12 a game is staggering to me. Why blame the Athletes and the owners for greed? Call it greed, call it whatever you want, but if you were placed in their position I'm sure you would do exactly the same - they are merely exploiting a market opportunity. No one has decreed that pro-sports should be accessible to the average public, but I think the various leagues have at least recognized that their mass appeal depends on it. Witness the NBA and NFL salary cap, which have limited salary growth and ticket prices with it. Baseball, without a cap, is another story, and in my mind the current situation makes a mockery of the sport. You can be sure of one thing Bobby, and that is when the pro-sports outgrow their market, there will be a correction and I would bet my farm on Baseball being the first one to suffer. Some other points that need clarifying:- * In Australia it is called the NBL (National Basketball League) not ABL * Perth Wildcats (from my home town) are the reigning champions of the NBL * Aussie Rules is a far superior game than Rugby and is the dominant sport in 5 out of 7 states In support of your argument, I would like to see more loyalty, and more control over the leagues to "keep it a sport" but I certainly don't begrudge them their mega-contracts. ------------------ Current Rocket's Salary & Contract Info
Bobby, I agree you have a right to free speech. I just don't remember you ever posting something that you weren't criticizing. If you hate the system so much, the best thing you can do, is not be a part of it. If every fan who did that, sports would have to take notice. I just think you would be a happier person if you didn't watch sports, that's all. Thanks for the compliment by the way...inane is a good thing right? ------------------ Just because you're white and play basketball doesn't mean you're a Matt Bullard clone, despite idiotic accusations to the contrary. visit www.swirve.com
Rocket: I think the issue here is that we fans love the game, and that owners (or the would-be powers) are taking advantage of that fact by charging exorbiant amounts. I personally would love to go to as many live games as possible, but have to opt for the tube because of the ticket prices. So if I'm understanding you correctly, there has to be a choice between fan involvement and shelling out mega bucks for that involvement? I don't think as fans we should have to make that choice. The "whining" here is about owners taking TOO much advantage of our fandom. It may sound un-capitalistic, but the crux is that I as a fan should have the right to watch a game where men run around putting baskets into a hoop for a reasonable price... and that basketball players, if valued on their contribution to society should not have salaries waaaay over and above professionals like doctors, teachers, and such.. even if their talents are prime examples of the law of scarcity. ------------------ rat-a-tat-tat, who lost a Cat?
