RE: Letter to NBA

["Wright, Cecil" <Cecil.Wright@JUSTICE.GC.CA>]

Also, the companies who make millions from these athletes who endorse their
product must make a decision about the image which their guy radiates.  How
many little ones who saw the flagrant foul committed against Shaq thought
that he acted fairly?  Sad to say but I know there are some who feel he was
justified and in the act of protecting himself when he threw the punches.

To me, it doesn't make a difference if he was right or wrong.  It is that to
many of today's youth, his actions are symbolic because so many of them
idolize him so.  There will be more instances like this as long as the
league and the sneakermen look the other way, so to speak.  Any guilty
culprit should be made to attend a meeting with Stu Jackson for whatever
discipline he can enact.

As well, the players' association needs to encourage the players to invoke
some kind of penalty whereby a severe levy is attached to ANY player who
takes matters into his own hands.  I think most of Shaq's teammates would
sympathize with the treatment he receives, and rightly so.  He is their
mealticket.  But, as Zo has pointed out, Shaq is not the only player who is
victimized by the hacking late in the ballgames.  Remember when Duncan was
having free throw problems last year against Portland I think.  He was
ripped each time he touched the ball.

Miller and Oakley are no angels, but what they did was an action which is
tolerated by the league.  What Shaq did is not.

Can someone tell me why Miller was fined and suspended therefore?

Cecil Wright, Nova Scotia Community Coordinator
Community Mobilization Program
Department of Justice Canada
Duke Tower - Suite 1400
5251 Duke Street
Halifax, NS  B3J 1P3
Tel: (902) 426-5950
Fax: (902) 426-8532
Email: cecil.wright@justice.gc.ca 
Web: www.crime-prevention.org


-----Original Message-----
From: Dorine Pratt [mailto:norine@sover.net]
Sent: January 16, 2002 11:17 AM
To: Celts
Subject: Letter to NBA


I'm not going to bore you with my letter to the NBA, but I pretty much
stated the refereeing was among the worst I've ever seen this year and that
they would be well served by better training and testing of the rules - and
about calling games the same for every team.  Refs should be made
immediately accountable for their mistakes.  I also said Shaq should have
received a stiffer penalty, since someone else had, for the same offense,
and because of his size he was dangerous if he really hit someone.  Not
because he's a bad guy, he isn't - but because he's so much bigger and
stronger than the average player.  Fairness from the refs for everyone is
all we're asking - that will solve alot of the problems.

Dorine