Should the NBA follow the NFL's lead and crack down on bad behaviour?

More NFL players have been arrested since the Super Bowl then have been NBA players arrested over the last 2.5 years. So, no. Artest may be scum; but the reason Pacman lost his "innocent until proven guilty" rights with that private league is because of the series of off-court incidents. Artest has really only gotten in trouble once off the court -- and, while I wouldn't bat an eyelid if he were found to be guilty, you can't drop the "innocent until proven guilty" bit until he comes up with at least half of Pacman's off-field file.

 

Kelly's right. The NBA's image as a thug league is mostly due to history and bias. The NFL has become a thug league and needs cleaning up. The NBA has far fewer incidents of bad off-court behavior.

 

I'd be shocked if Stern doesn't implement it this summer. Stephen Jackson and Ron Artest alone are reason enough. They don't need it because of a multitude of players, but the Pacer nightclub incidents are hurting the league's image. Dresscode Stern will be all over it.

Evan

 

I'm not saying that that the NFL doesn't have worse disciplinary issues than the NBA, but the NFL also has many more players on each teams roster. Statistically they'd have to have more runins with the law, just by having more players.

 

Well, there are 15 players per NBA team so the # of incidents will be lower of course. A % or ratio would really show us which league has more incidents.

 

I don't know the stats, but the ratios are much worse in the NFL as well. (Did you see the USA Today article?)

 

Yes. The NBA should ban Pacman Jones from all events for one year.

 

I think the whole thing sucks and is basically un-American IMO. Pro athletes are paid to do their thing on the field or on the court, or at the most extended to league events (press conferences, functions, etc). Their private time should be their private time, unless it results in fundamentally cheating their sports (involved with gambling on their sport, steroids). Let the judicial and civil systems handle transgressions on players' own time, which is the proper place.

I should add I find it completely hypocritical that pretty much well-documented perpetrators of domestic violence are in high levels of various sports (players, coaches, announcers) while other players get suspensions for (not yet proven) charges. Granted I have not followed Indiana nightclub thing real close, but I am guessing multiple parties shared culpability in those events, that isn’t as disturbing to me as violence in one’s home.

 

did you actually just post that?

 

sby, what would you like Stern to do? The NFL's commish took (rightful) praise for banishing Pacman Jones for one season. That's ALL he's done so far. This went against most norms because Jones hasn't been convicted of anything.

Now, the NBA would be well within its rights as a private league to banish Artest and Jackson for one season -- but is that what you're asking Stern to do? Like I said, I don't doubt for a second that Jackson was quite the a-hole in that ONE altercation, and that Artest beat his spouse ... but those are singular incidents. Jones was suspended for getting arrested several (someone help me out here ... how many times?) times over a short span. Artest and Jackson have been arrested ONCE ... with cases pending.

So, with that established, and you still whining, let's get clearer: do you want David Stern to ban Ron Artest and/or Stephen Jackson for an entire season for a single altercation that hasn't even gone to court yet? Please answer that.

Goodell's contention, one that I agree with, is that Jones waived his "innocent until proven guilty" rights due to the sheer amount of incidents over a short amount of time. Jackson and Artest had ONE incident, this entire season. And ONE, for their entire career. Do you want them banished?

 

You're right -- I just read that entire post, and the guy's a moron.

There are 15 guys on an NBA roster. Take that up to the 55 guys on an NFL roster, allow for the disparity, and then multiply that by the amount of NBA arrests over the last five years. Does that number, even then, come even close to HALF the NFL arrests? I read on some other blog -- the numbers aren't even close.

The reason for the perception issues that you mentioned is because America loves football, more than Jesus, more than anything else. Lyle Alzado dies without a hair on his head, America turns the other way. Ray Lewis is in the same limo as a pair of people who stabbed a guy (who knows if Ray did it or not), and yet Super Bowl ads hit an all-time high the next February, in game Lewis plays in. Steroids, murder, theft, drug dealing, assault ... blind eye, blind eye, blind eye. And, again, do a little homework: give for the roster size disparity, google/wikipedia a bit, and then get back to me regarding enormous difference between NFL and NBA arrests.

 

Pacman has been arrested 5 times, interviewed by police 5 more times. He has never been to trial, but many think he will be charged with something related to the All-Star Weekend incident.

 

I'm not defending what Artest did to his wife, but his situation and Pacman Jones's situation aren't even in the same stratosphere. Pacman Jones created a public safety hazard at a major sports event and is facing felony charges. I don't think Artest has been charged with anything yet...

 

I'm no Artest biographer, but I think he has had two incidents this year alone, one involving beating his wife and the other something to do with abusing his dog. I heard both of them reported on local media.

 

You're right. And I wouldn't mind never having to hear Artest's name again -- and he used to be one of my favorite players. I used to talk to him in his rookie/second year at the UC and found him to be intelligent in a lot of areas, intuitive, quiet, shy ... I thought he was a great guy. So this me ("I thought he was a great guy") going "I don't give a rip about him." That's how far I've come. And yet, I'm still not going to ask Stern to waive the "innocent until proven guilty" rights after two (horrible, horrible) alleged offenses. Pacman lost his by getting busted five times, with a possible felony -- and even that's an extreme, odd case (even with a private league) that has people talking and union people all a twitter.

Still waiting to hear from the thread starter: would he like to see Stern give the same punishment to these two players for 1/5th the misdeed?