Absurdity

[Lipoli390]

Here's a recent comment by one of my favorites in NBA history, Dwayne Wade:

It was at this point where Wade decided to drop a shocking truth bomb about how the hatred for the Heat was racially motivated: "We knew that some of the hate was because of our skin color," he claimed. "Because of being Black men and deciding to control the fate of our careers. ... So, when we had the power, when we had the moment, we took it. But some of the hate came because we were three Black guys who decided and changed the way that the NBA probably would ever be because of that decision." - via Paolo Songco @ Clutch Points

The article refers to Wade's comment as a shocking "truth bomb." Unfortunately, we're in a time and place today where no one will dare suggest publicly that there probably isn't any truth in what Wade said. First of all, to the extent there was hate, or more accurately anger, directed at any player it was aimed at LeBron for the way he went about leaving Cleveland, not at Bosh and certainly not at Wade. Second, the generalized anger resulted from watching a group of elite players banding together to do something that seemed fundamentally unfair - something that would further skew the NBA system in favor of certain big glitzy markets. We all read reports about the three deciding which team they all wanted to end up with. Those comments included Bosh dismissing the Cavs as a destination because he didn't want to live in Cleveland. People generally have an aversion to mercenaries and that's what those three players became when they decided to band together to form a "superteam." It's human nature to value and admire loyalty, courage, fortitude and fair play. Therefore, we tend to dislike the opposite - disloyalty, expedience, taking the easy route or trying to rig the game in your favor. When growing up on the playground, we'd typically have the two best players as captains and they'd alternate when picking players. We did that to make sure the games would be fair and competitive. In a sense, Wade's right that the anger over what those three players did came from a sense that they changed how the NBA would function going forward, but that's a superficial, incomplete explanation and it's a huge leap for him to then conclude that the anger had anything to do with the race of those three players who were disrupting the system and arguably "rigging the game."

Bill Laimbeer was universally despised outside of Detroit because he was a surly thug, not because he was white. Darko Milicic was disliked because he was a lazy, not because he was white or European. Magic, Jordan and Bird were beloved because they were great players who played incredibly hard and with a sense of unmatched joy and love for the game. What all three also had in common was that they stayed with their respective teams without ever complaining publicly about their teammates or their situations and without ever hinting that they would take their talents to South Beach. Does Dwayne Wade really believe the Heat would have been any less despised back then if the three players involved had been Larry Bird, John Stockton and Dirk Nowitski all in their prime? Does anyone really believe Bird would not have been disliked if he had pulled a stunt like LeBron's "The Decision" and said he was "taking my talents to South Beach"?

Racism is all around us. It's toxic, decisive, disgusting and dangerous. It's a really serious issue and that's precisely why we need to be especially careful about invoking racism to characterize or explain things we don't like. I still like Dwayne Wade. He remains one of my favorite players of all time and I continue to believe he's a terrific person. Unfortunately for him, the only voices he'll hear are those that echo his unsupported opinion. It's unfortunate because without any push back he'll never learn or grow. Life is easier if you have one simple explanation that demonizes or impugns the motives of those who do or say something you don't like. And it's certainly easier to dismiss criticism and feel good about yourself when you instantly invalidate that criticism as racist. But while easier, it's dishonest and dangerous. Self-deception can create a sense of bliss, but it's destructive.

Sorry to get get sidetracked a bit from the typical and far more fun topics we discuss on this board. But I couldn't help myself.

[Carlos Danger]

I had similar thoughts when I initially read about that. But, I just sort of rolled my eyes and moved on. The reality is that's how he feels and his life experiences are going to be a lot different than the average white man. But my opinion is that what really bugged people had less to do with skin color, and more about Divas banding together to create these Super Teams.

[Monster]

Lip did you watch or listen to the conversation Wade had with Redick or did you just read these comments?

[Porckchop]

These players are worshiped like Gods among men. Achieved 1% status and still feel slighted. I don't remember this kind of mentality from players in the 80s and 90s

[Coolbreeze44]

It was fun to cheer against the Heat when they had the big three, but for me it had nothing to do with skin color. I'm all about competitive balance and it went away long before these guys got together. But it was another blow to the competitive nature of the league, and it has spawned more of the same since.

I think Lip makes a lot of great points here. I can't speak for all NBA fans, but it's natural to assume some had a racial bias about this. But by and large I think most fans didn't like the short-cut approach these guys took to winning.

[Lipoli390]

Lip did you watch or listen to the conversation Wade had with Redick or did you just read these comments?

Just read Wade's comment.

[Monster]

Lip did you watch or listen to the conversation Wade had with Redick or did you just read these comments?

Just read Wade's comment.

It might be worth watching the conversation and see what you think from there. The conversation with Wade starts at 27:54.

https://youtu.be/zcbh5Z0SM1g

[Lipoli390]

Lip did you watch or listen to the conversation Wade had with Redick or did you just read these comments?

Just read Wade's comment.

It might be worth watching the conversation and see what you think from there. The conversation with Wade starts at 27:54.

https://youtu.be/zcbh5Z0SM1g

I watched it. It doesn't change my view of Wade's comment except that I now know it was JJ Redick who raised the race issue - in his typical arrogant self-aggrandizing way. Unfortunately, Wade readily and emphatically embraced and ran with the point once Redick raised it, saying in response to Redick that "you hit the nail on the head." My reaction to Wade's comment doesn't reflect a blind eye to the likelihood that some fans were additionally inflamed by racial animus. I just think it's worthy of a footnote at best and when you mention race it takes over the conversation. It becomes the one part of a long conversation that gets quoted, which is what happened in this case. My point is that we all need to be careful about invoking race even if only as part of an explanation. Redick's reference to race was obviously self-serving because he knew it bring attention to his podcast and elevate his standing in certain circles. I can understand Wade taking the bait, but I wish he had paused and chosen a different course. As I said in my initial post, my positive view of Dwayne Wade hasn't changed at all. My concern is that this one comment will be unduly magnified and go unchallenged.

What I really find sad is that there was so much hate directed at what they did. Based on Wade's comments, it sounded like that hate was directly primarily at LeBron. He talked about hearing horrible things directed at LeBron when they made their first appearance in Cleveland. Much of the hatred from Cleveland fans probably resulted from their sense that LeBron betrayed them and trifled with them through his ridiculous charade called "the Decision." But really what those three did, even LeBron's Charade, was hardly worthy of anything approaching hatred. Unfortunately, many take sports too seriously. That's another issue entirely.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Well said, Lip. I don't have much to add as I think your feelings and explanations closely resemble mine here.

I think it's largely irresponsible for anyone, especially Dwyane Wade given his wide platform, to attribute the hate towards those Miami Heat teams to racism or anything similar. Simply, fans didn't like that two stars left their teams to team up with another star, and it didn't help that they landed in the flashy market that is Miami. Furthermore, they were braggadocios from the beginning with LeBron James and "The Decision" followed by cocky remarks regarding how many championships they'd win together. "Not 5, not 6, not 7..." Their own actions caused much of the vitriol -- not their skin color.

[Monster]

Well said, Lip. I don't have much to add as I think your feelings and explanations closely resemble mine here.

I think it's largely irresponsible for anyone, especially Dwyane Wade given his wide platform, to attribute the hate towards those Miami Heat teams to racism or anything similar. Simply, fans didn't like that two stars left their teams to team up with another star, and it didn't help that they landed in the flashy market that is Miami. Furthermore, they were braggadocios from the beginning with LeBron James and "The Decision" followed by cocky remarks regarding how many championships they'd win together. "Not 5, not 6, not 7..." Their own actions caused much of the vitriol -- not their skin color.

Cam did you watch the conversation which I posted? It's only a few minutes long.