By fining Spurs, NBA commissioner has set a dangerous precedent
NEW YORK -- Somewhere in the NBA's offices in Olympic tower, someone had to have begged David Stern to stop. You flew off the handle, David, I'm imagining someone saying, let's see if we can find you a graceful way out. Let's put this talk of slapping "substantial sanctions" -- whatever that was supposed to mean -- on the San Antonio Spurs back into the cereal box you pulled it out of and live to fight another day.
No one did, of course, and we are left with this: The NBA fined the Spurs a whopping $250,000 on Friday for doing what was in the best interests of the team. In electing to leave Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Danny Green at home, in telling them that after playing five games in eight nights and with a critical showdown against Memphis on Saturday to sit one out, the Spurs had, in the eyes of Stern, compromised the integrity of the game. Nevermind that San Antonio had done this multiple times before. Or that other teams had spit in the face of paying customers for far more diabolical reasons.
Remember in 2006, when Minnesota benched Kevin Garnett and Ricky Davis for the final game of the season? When they allowed Mark Madsen to play like Ray Allen just to keep its draft pick?
How about that same year, when the Suns sat Steve Nash and Raja Bell late in the season against the Lakers to ensure a loss that would elevate L.A. -- and its terrible transition defense -- over the Kings and into a first round matchup with Phoenix?
Or how about in 2002-2003, when the Cavaliers kicked away game after game in a blatant attempt to secure Akron, Ohio native LeBron James?
Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/chris_mannix/12/01/david-stern-spurs-fine-wrong/index.html#ixzz2DpYIy3hs
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