NBA notables concur: 'Fans lose when players sit'

WASHINGTON, DC — During a recent game between the Washington Wizards and the Memphis Grizzlies, the home crowd at the Verizon Center in downtown Washington, DC, were treated a resounding victory with a final score of 107-87.
While the fans welcomed the timely home-team victory, too many of those same dedicated and loyal fans were also losers in a sense, that they were not offered an opportunity to witness the star players of one of the NBA’s stellar franchises.
On this Thursday night, March 12, the Grizzlies’ management chose to sit four of its leading players – players who are considered highly significant to the teams’ success. It was later disclosed that Memphis management chose to bench its star players due to a scheduling glitch which found the team playing on five consecutive nights. Still, when it comes to the fans, this excuse is null and void.
As fans, we’re aware that NBA players are paid mightily for their talents, and the team’s front-office schedule-makers also earn a hefty annually salary to do their work too. So, what’s the excuse? There is no excuse. The players should get out on the floor and earn those high-paying salaries.
In fact, when it comes to fans purchasing tickets for NBA contests in advance of the teams’ actual visit to each arena, you would expect to see the best product on the floor – hence Memphis in essence cheated the Wizards’ fans from watching the likes of Marc Gasol, Tony Allen, Zach “Z-Boe” Randolph and Michael Conley Jr. on that given night. Only Conley had a legitimate reason for the rest, considering he was recuperating from a severely sprained ankle which occurred the previous night.

Boldly, when questioned by the media whether he felt his team had been disrespected by the Grizzlies when they chose not to play their best players, Wizards’ all-star point guard, John Wall agreed wholeheartedly that his squad had been disrespected by the Memphis franchise.
“That’s how I see it,” said Wall, a former star at the University of Kentucky. “They sit them, I don’t really know the reason why,” said Wall. “We are a team that’s on the rise and teams respect us now and then they don’t respect us. We just wanted to come out and play basketball the right way and get the win no matter what.”
Conversely, a USA Today blogger named Geoff Burke, had issues with Wall’s reaction. And in a personal letter to Wall in Burke’s column, he stated:
“John, don’t do that. Don’t be that guy. I’m sure you were upset that you didn’t have a chance to prove yourself against one of the NBA’s best last night, but they didn’t make the decision they made last night to disrespect you or the team.
Over 82 games, every player on every team breaks down at some point, especially on grueling trips playing five games in seven nights, like the Grizzlies were finishing up last night.”
Meanwhile, in reaction to the Grizzlies managerial decision, on the subsequent weekend of the Wizards-Grizzlies contest, NBA-TV moderators Rick Fox, a three-time NBA champ and former NBA head coach Mike Fratello, both agreed that it’s the fans who suffer when NBA teams choose not to play their starters.
In addition, during a rare one-on-one interview with Ahmad Rashad on NBA-TV, future NBA Hall of Famer Kobe Bean Bryant, stated that he’s always been committed to play games in all cities throughout his illustrious career – even in the face of attempting to recuperate from pain and injuries.
“Hey, that kid (who came to see me play), could be the next me. I really need to get out there and play,” said Bryant during a rare one-on-one interview which aired in February on the NBA cable network.
With NBA ticket prices ranging from anywhere between $30 up to $200 per ticket (at least that’s the price range for Wizards’ seats), it’s only fair that players who earn exorbitant salaries compared with the hard-working fans and families who may have used bill money to pay for multiple tickets – hey the least these billion dollar franchises can do is provide its best possible product on a daily basis.
That being said, as I reflect, two years ago on April 10, 2013, when then-reigning champion Miami Heat came to the Verizon Center and chose not to play its “Big Three” in LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh.
It’s no wonder John Wall felt some type of dejavu disrespect whenever the Grizzlies pulled-off a similar stunt. As was Wall, I too happened to be in the arena that night during the Miami game, and I, along with my family — and a nearly-capacity crowd – not only felt disrespected, we felt cheated because we had spent our hard-earned dollars to see the NBA’s finest and were not given the opportunity to witness what we had already paid for — to see a live version of the best pro basketball teams in the world.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Jason Wallace, a Memphis Grizzlies spokesperson, was contacted about this article, but was unable to contribute by deadline).