I have no previous opinion of the author of the article, ESPN's Mr. Tim Keown, and find ESPN articles well written (as that one surely is if I had the stomach to read it) and I frequently read (Insider subscriber). My offense is not with the premise or his opinion, it's with the fact that most readers probably agree. At what point did the story behind sports become more of a story than the sports themselves? Has this years playoffs not been filled with stories? Kobe having his knee drained between series? Pretty sure the Western Conference finals will decide whether the AZ Immigration legislation is repealed. The Celtics and their band of older men just waltzed through Orlando and smacked the Magic in the chops but I have a feeling they're going to respond like a cornered junk yard dog. The Spurs put a hurt on the favored Mavs, and there have been some game 7's. Yet. We think about next year. And the year after. Who will LBJ sign with? What will the deal be? Will Cal come with him? Coincidence that the two markets in play are New York and Chicago? Probably not. I don't blame the markets themselves for focusing (local news media, etc). After all, your season is done. I just don't think the average fan (who tunes into ESPN) and especially those smaller markets like Orlando and Phoenix should have their accomplishments ignored for a story that isn't going to settle for months and may or may not affect next years playoffs (not that it matters, maybe they'll focus on the free agents that year instead).
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Symptom of the problem with sports today
I stumbled across this headline today and it struck a nerve: Pick one: LeBron James or NBA playoffs: Free-agency saga has more drama, human interest than postseason games so far.
I have no previous opinion of the author of the article, ESPN's Mr. Tim Keown, and find ESPN articles well written (as that one surely is if I had the stomach to read it) and I frequently read (Insider subscriber). My offense is not with the premise or his opinion, it's with the fact that most readers probably agree. At what point did the story behind sports become more of a story than the sports themselves? Has this years playoffs not been filled with stories? Kobe having his knee drained between series? Pretty sure the Western Conference finals will decide whether the AZ Immigration legislation is repealed. The Celtics and their band of older men just waltzed through Orlando and smacked the Magic in the chops but I have a feeling they're going to respond like a cornered junk yard dog. The Spurs put a hurt on the favored Mavs, and there have been some game 7's. Yet. We think about next year. And the year after. Who will LBJ sign with? What will the deal be? Will Cal come with him? Coincidence that the two markets in play are New York and Chicago? Probably not. I don't blame the markets themselves for focusing (local news media, etc). After all, your season is done. I just don't think the average fan (who tunes into ESPN) and especially those smaller markets like Orlando and Phoenix should have their accomplishments ignored for a story that isn't going to settle for months and may or may not affect next years playoffs (not that it matters, maybe they'll focus on the free agents that year instead).
I have no previous opinion of the author of the article, ESPN's Mr. Tim Keown, and find ESPN articles well written (as that one surely is if I had the stomach to read it) and I frequently read (Insider subscriber). My offense is not with the premise or his opinion, it's with the fact that most readers probably agree. At what point did the story behind sports become more of a story than the sports themselves? Has this years playoffs not been filled with stories? Kobe having his knee drained between series? Pretty sure the Western Conference finals will decide whether the AZ Immigration legislation is repealed. The Celtics and their band of older men just waltzed through Orlando and smacked the Magic in the chops but I have a feeling they're going to respond like a cornered junk yard dog. The Spurs put a hurt on the favored Mavs, and there have been some game 7's. Yet. We think about next year. And the year after. Who will LBJ sign with? What will the deal be? Will Cal come with him? Coincidence that the two markets in play are New York and Chicago? Probably not. I don't blame the markets themselves for focusing (local news media, etc). After all, your season is done. I just don't think the average fan (who tunes into ESPN) and especially those smaller markets like Orlando and Phoenix should have their accomplishments ignored for a story that isn't going to settle for months and may or may not affect next years playoffs (not that it matters, maybe they'll focus on the free agents that year instead).
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