Sex, Guns and the NBA
What if carrying a gun doesn’t make you an NBA player, it just makes you an American?
by Khalid Salaam
“Why are NBA dudes always carrying guns?”
That was a jokingly posed question to me the other day when I mentioned that the start of the season was but days away. Even though my friend was playing, it wasn’t the first time someone has intimated that the League is a bastion of thuggery.
To which I say, it’s not.
But if you still want to say that, then that’s cool, because all that means is that the league and its players are just falling in line with the rest of this country. Don’t act it’s not like the USA wasn’t founded on and still exists on a foundation of brutality. But that’s another story.
The first thing everybody said about Stephen Jackson’s latest headline-making error in judgment was, Why was he out at 3 in the morning anyway?
Why does this matter? He could have been out at 3 in the afternoon and someone could have approached him in a less-than-savory way. Plus it happened at a strip club where pretty much anything can happen.
(SIDEBAR: I hate strip clubs. I used to live in Atlanta where the strip club credo is pretty much the more the merrier. When I’ve gone I always feel like I’m being hustled by the women. And my rule has always been if you have to pay for uh, interactions, then maybe you don’t deserve it. END.)
Strip club joints are notorious for shady happenings. Anyone can get robbed there, not just NBA players, but hey, it’s late night Indianapolis and maybe there’s just not a lot going on. South Beach it is not. The strip joint is probably the only thing really poppin, so yeah he and some other players probably go and check out what’s going on. So if you’re going to go you might want to bring a gun with you.
I’ve never owned a gun but my stepdad used to keep a handgun in a lockbox in his bedroom and sometimes even in his car. And I’ve had friends who have guns in plain sight, including one dude who kept a sawed-off shotgun his bedroom. I used to ask him if it was that serious and he said probably not, but you never know.
Now, I’m no gun-hater. Whenever I get married and have young ones I probably will keep a gun around somewhere. Damn that brazen home invasion nonsense. I’m not actually a gun supporter either, but it just depends on the situation.
The situation with Bassy is different but because he’s an NBA player the connection is viewed through a different set of Cartier’s. My first question when I heard about it was why was he as Justin’s anyway? That joint hasn’t been official for a few years now. Who was he trying to impress in there for him to have a chain on in the first place?
I also love how Fabolous was involved and even got shot in the leg. He should definitely drop an album or at least a mixtape immediately — this is great for his career. The thing with NBA guys and guns falls in line with the concept of any young Black guys with guns, which is to say, a bad thing in most peoples eyes. It’s always thinly veiled but it goes back to that subconscious voice in the back of more people’s minds than you think. Young black guys are a threat and need to be disarmed or closely monitored. Whether they are professional athletes or not.
Anytime they are caught doing something it’s always viewed as an outrage instead of an aberration. There are hundreds of players in the L and the overwhelmingly majority of them don’t get involved in this kind of stuff. (Well, unless they play for the Blazers, who I have no justification for. Those guys are just nuts, I guess). Some of these guys are gonna have guns and occasionally stupid or dangerous things are gonna happen.
But that’s how it is for the rest of us as well. Guns are dangerous yes, but sometimes they are needed (even if David Stern disagrees). It doesn’t mean they’re all thugs, just people who have notoriety and because of that become targets for people who don’t have anything to lose.
They’re protecting themselves.
They’re just Americans.
38 Responses to “Sex, Guns and the NBA”
Oct.26 at 12:20 pm
Max Airington says:
Correct me if Im wrong, but I heard that Stephen used to be a member in one of America’s most popular social clubs. The Bloods.
Oct.26 at 12:32 pm
Chris O'Leary says:
I was surprised when the SJ thing first went down that someone didn’t start spouting off about gun control–I know I wanted to. Between then and the time the Bassy thing took place, though, it kinda hit me that gun control’s a great idea, but it’s one that’s a few hundred years too late to ever really work. The gun culture/mentality is far too prevalent now for that to be an option. These things are gonna happen again and again. It just is what it is.
Oct.26 at 1:09 pm
Bryant Reeves says:
Great article Khalid, but you didn’t address the issue of bodyguards. Instead of carrying a gun, why don’t these guys hire a bodyguard or turn someone in their entourage into a bodyguard and get them to carry the weapon instead? Granted, this will only push the problems of athletes and guns one step down from the athlete themself, but it might help with their PR (and the PR of the league) if it is a licensed and trained bodyguard who has the registered firearm, and not the high profile athlete… How great would it be if SJ was rolling with a couple of retired cops - maybe they should turn that into a sitcom.
Oct.26 at 1:15 pm
Khalid Salaam says:
A lot of guys do have bodyguards and yeah SJ should have had one that night and maybe it wouldn’t have been such a big deal but the context would remain the same. So instead of NBA player shoots gun it becomes member of NBA players posse shoots gun. Either way the connection to the League and the perception of players as gun-toting idiots remains the same.
Oct.26 at 1:37 pm
Max Airington says:
But is it the racial undertone that’s selling the story, or just the fact that negativity sells? JJ Reddick and The Birdman got their fair share of pub too…
Oct.26 at 1:40 pm
Khalid Salaam says:
Probably both.Plus you have to realize that the casual fan thinks white dudes in the league wannabe black anyway. They just assume they’ve picked up some bad habits.
Oct.26 at 1:59 pm
Noah Doucette says:
thats one greasy mugshot
Oct.26 at 2:04 pm
Max Airington says:
You are right about the accessiblity of NBA players though. Practically anyone can run up on them and say anything they like. But when guns and violence get involved, the players really need to ask themselves why they are even in that type of situation. Most folks arent strapped, so the only issue is to stay away from those who are. Which means that instead of going to the strip club, maybe you should just get a hotel room and have a private show. But then again, someone might end up accused of something. Or even worse Zach Randolph could show up.
Oct.26 at 2:26 pm
Creech says:
I have to say, I agree with Stern. Having a gun drastically increases the chances you will be shot–whether it be in your home or on your person.
- I must say though, that I’m a teacher, and that when that Pennsylvania state senator wanted to pass a law that would allow teachers to be armed I was excited. I don’t even live in Pennsylvania, but it’s a great idea!
Oct.26 at 2:36 pm
Ron says:
It’s a shame that a Constitutional right that was written 225 years ago could end up being the downfall of the american society. Somebody tell me why we still need the right to bear arms at this day and age? When it was written in to law there was a need for private citizens to hold arm in case of attack from the British, French, Native Americans, or wild animals. We don’t have those threats in modern society. Our threat is gun toting moron next door, down the street, and around the corner. Charlton Heston be damned, we need to do away with the NRA and save the guns for police and military use.
Oct.26 at 2:54 pm
Nads says:
Kahild,
What if it Austin Croshere that got into that beef? Or Adam Morrison? Or Matt Harpring?
…
Oct.26 at 2:59 pm
Will says:
I agree … Living here in Canada we have enough problems of illegal guns being imported from the US and being used to kill someone. If the US would start banishing gun trade and start confiscating firearms, Canada would suffer less.
I think being a public figure being watched and adored by millions and millions of kids, you sort of have the responsibility not to give the wrong impression of “cool”. Bringing guns and playing with it ain’t “cool”.
Oct.26 at 3:12 pm
Jamison says:
I think if Jax thought to himself “I need my gun… just in case” before he went out that night, maybe going to Club Rio wasn’t such a good idea.
Oct.26 at 3:58 pm
Max Airington says:
The gun problem is completely out of control in this country, but there has never been an appropriate time to revise the laws. WWI & II? The civil rights movement? Even now, with the terrorism paranoia, people would never give up their right to have guns. And Ill be damned if the police are the only ones strapped.
Oct.26 at 4:26 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Athletes accept exorbitant paychecks, and should thusly be held to higher standards. It just happened that the guy that got in this particular mess happened to be Jack—who’s always been something of a ghetto superstar (who wears diamond-encrusted fronts in the locker room?)—and it happened to happen at 3 a.m. at a strip club. In Indiana. Which is a feat in and of itself, from what I know of Indy. It’s not a matter of black or white, it’s a matter of PROFESSIONALISM. A true professional wouldn’t get in a situation like that. Reggie Miller wouldn’t have gotten into that situation, ever. Chris Andersen probably would have. Probably did, for that matter. And as for the carrying guns part, I’m against it for just about everybody. Why would you be carrying anyway, to protect yourself from someone else who’s carrying? It’s a chicken-and-the-egg situation. And if ALL the damn guns were gone, then and only then would it go away.
Oct.26 at 4:26 pm
CASHVILLE says:
I think being worth millions of dollars and carrying a gun go hand in hand because the poverty in this country causes people to become animals fueled by jealousy and envy. These guys shoudn’t be restricted to the confines of their homes just because they’re famous but I do agree that they should be held accountable for the decisions that they make such as being at strip clubs at 3 in the morning and hanging outside of Justin’s with a $50,000 chain around your neck. Bassy was asking for it but he’s young and he will learn if he hasn’t already. These guys get so caught up in floss mode that they forget about the “real world” where brother’s are hungry and hating and will get it by “any means neccesary”. Where I’m from you can get killed over a $2000 box Chevy so just imagined what that Beamer or that 600 might do. It’s a cold world but it’s better to be caught with it than without it. By the way, nice work Khalid.
Oct.26 at 4:58 pm
Simply Turrible says:
As Khalid says, its kinda strange how when someone in the NBA behaves poorly (i.e shooting a gun, assault, etc.) the media views this to be an indication of a wider, league-wide problem that the NBA is populated by a bunch of “thugs”, rather than the anomoly that they are. Sure, there are people in the NBA that are rough around the edges; many players grew up in surroundings where violence, drugs, and gangs are a normalized part of the social fabric. Yet nine out of ten go on to be good citizens off the court, and nobody says a thing about them. But when a select few act up, then it is seen by many as being a reflection on every single player in the NBA! This confounds me and infuriates me. In other sports, when a player misbehaves, he is regarded as an individual acting outside the parameters of their sport. For example, the MLB player Jose Uribe is being linked to a murder, and do we see stories about how professional baseball is a league of gangsters? When Mo Clarret got popped, was it seen as an indication that college football has a problem with violence? No, these cases have by and large been viewed as an individual acting like a moron, which is pretty much the case. Why then, when an NBA player does something stupid is it viewed as a reflection of the sport as a whole? Race definitely plays a part, no doubt, but the NFL is also predominantly African American and doesn’t seem to suffer from the same problem. So what gives? Do the racist minds that be see the NBA as beeing “too black”, too “hip-hop” and this severely inhibits them from perceiving pro basketball through the same eyes they see other pro sports? Sorry for this long, ranting post, but I am so sick and tired of this bullshit attitude that people bring towards the NBA, and IT NEEDS TO STOP!!!!!!
Oct.26 at 5:00 pm
Josh says:
Khalid, you ask why it matters why it was 3am: (1) Nothing ever good happens while your out at 3am. (2) They were suppossed to be in training camp - most Americans don’t get to go out until 3am on a work/school night - so the perception is they are not taking their jobs seriously. As an Indy fan this was simply the last straw with Jackson. True, not all NBA players are thugs, but everything Jackson has done since he’s been here leads me to believe, he is, in fact, a thug. What has he ever done to lead anyone to believe otherwise?
Oct.26 at 5:07 pm
John D. says:
I agree with Russ 100 percent on this. Of course it is legal to carry guns, it is legal to go to strip clubs, and it is legal to be there at 3 a.m., but that doesn’t mean that combining those three things in the middle of training camp is an intelligent idea. I can see why Reggie was so upset about this.
Oct.26 at 5:13 pm
BigL says:
I’m with Chris Rock and sayin they should make the bullets $10,000 each. Then maybe SJ would think twice about shooting $30,000 in the air (although he can afford it). Seriously, the athletes are targets. It doesn’t matter where your at or who you are (Paul Pierce, Bassy, RIP James Jordan.) If people recognize you and they are hungry and dumb, you will get jacked or worse, killed. I’m not for guns, but if the NBA is is telling the world that these dudes will not have any protection, give these guys a security guard.
Oct.26 at 5:18 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
And as for the disparate attention on the bad seeds, that’s the way its always been in ALL walks of life. Hell, The Who got headlines for smashing their instruments, bands that simply put their stuff down at the end of their set and walked away didn’t get the same type of attention. Ditto for Led Zeppelin destroying hotel rooms or Jimi Hendrix setting his guitar on fire. The only way the Jack story could have been better was if he had been arrested by Shaq.
Oct.26 at 5:20 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
And L, why can’t the players hire their own bodyguards? Shaq does it. Kobe does (or at least did) it. They’re a heck of a lot cheaper than lawyers.
Oct.26 at 5:32 pm
DP says:
Hey we are Americans, we have the right to do whatever we want to do. It is a free country. I am not saying that what SJ did was right but what I am saying is that he was just trying to defend himself. SJ does need to clean his act though. He says that he is not a thug, but if continues to act like one that is how the public is going to perceive him. kobe in no. 1 and monta for most improved player of the year and rudy gay for rookie of the year. play wit it
Oct.26 at 5:50 pm
Dbomb says:
If we get rid of all the guns then the aliens will easily take over. K first of all I need to tell you that a lot of black kids at my school try to act hard when they aren’t hustlers at all. People need to realize that if you’re really hustlin you keep it on the DL for many reasons. Just remember, “The game is to be sold not told” and im seeing a lot more tellin than sellin goin on. Oh yeah and by reading this you just became way dumber.
Oct.26 at 6:00 pm
Khalid Salaam says:
A lot kids pretend to be hard because of societal conditioning. But when the you know hits the fan they wish they were chilling with their moms. Black kids are incredibly susectible to that. And i guess other as well. Trust me i know the problems that guns cause but i can’t front. There are times when you need them. Just have to have the smarts to know when. SJ is probably not one of those guys unfortunately.
Oct.26 at 6:44 pm
BdAvE13 says:
“Hey we are Americans, we have the right to do whatever we want to do. It is a free country.” What more can I say. lol
Oct.26 at 8:10 pm
Dbomb says:
I definitely think that if you are an nba player u should be allowed to have a concealed weapon. I mean even with a guard u would still want one cuz an autograph seeker could try to stab u or somethin. In this cold world u never know
Oct.26 at 11:15 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Yo, weeks went by and I’m surprised
Still stuck in the shelf with all the things that an outlaw hides
Besides me it’s bullets, two vests and then a nine
There’s a grenade in a box, and that tech that kept cryin
Cause he ain’t been cleaned in a year, he’s rusty as clear
He’s bout to fall to pieces, cause of his murder career
Yo, I can hear somebody comin in, open the shelf
His eyes bubblin, he said, “It was on”
I felt his palm troubled him shakin
Somebody stomped him out, his dome was achin
He placed me on his waist, the moment I’ve been waitin
My creation was for blacks to kill blacks
It’s gats like me that accidentally, go off, makin n****z memories
But this time, it’s done intentionally
He walked me outside, saw this cat
Cocked me back, said, “Remember me?”
He pulled the trigger but I held on, it felt wrong
Knowing niggaz is waiting in hell for ‘im
He squeezed harder, I didn’t budge, sick of the blood
Sick of the thugs, sick of wrath of the, next man’s grudge
What the other kid did was pull out, no doubt
A newer me in better shape, before he lit out, he lead the chase
My owner fell to the floor, his wig split so fast
I didn’t know he was hit, it’s over with
Heard mad n****z screamin, n****z runnin, cops is comin
Now I’m happy, until I felt somebody else grab me
Damn!
Oct.26 at 11:15 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Actually Nas said that.
Oct.27 at 10:21 am
Shiz says:
As the saying goes, guns don’t kill people. Stupid MF’ers with guns kill people. Its kinda tough in regard to the matter in a general sense, cuz yeah these guys are targets.. And it we’ve seen anything its that the trend is an escalation in violence between the League guys and non ballplayers. So in that respect, JHodge got shot 4 times in the leg..Im sure its not that simple for him. Granted his life is safe and thank The Most High for that, but now his career is in a tailspin and it was hard enough for him..Same thing with the kid outta DC (Blatche or somethin. Those are the situations that are really unfortunate. There’s a lot of hate out there for anyone with even a modicum of success…Perhaps that’s due to the growing gap between the dirt broke and the filthy rich and the growing disillusionment that there really is no “middle class” any more. It seems like either you gettin gwap hand over fist or you strugglin. And as mentioned above, when your stomach is growlin and them ribs is touchin that icey chain probably looks like a big ol steak. As for the players, they do need to do a better job of keeping themselves outta harms way..And I do agree that getting into altercations at 3 am is not Employee-of-the-Month material. I think half of the outrage at hearing stories like those are that as someone above said 1) being out til 3am on a “work” night doesn’t show a lotta commitment to your gig, and 2) If your job found out that you were in an altercation outside a strip club at 3 am w/ a firearm that you let off, ya might get fired…Early… So its like, not only are these guys being reckless with their own lives, there SEEMS to be no repercussions being handed out. In Stephen Jack’s defense, he kinda did just get done being hit by a car so, yeah, that’ll definitely take ya outta the Christmas spirit, but for every action there’s a reaction. What if dudes look at that and be like “Oh, League niggas strappin up, now? I better go get some bigger shit.” Everyone knows that you answer a gun with a bigger gun, and dudes gotta think of that ramification that may happen down the line before drawin… It’s such a fine line…Protection? Or self-fulfilling prophecy? I personally believe better to have and not need, but then again, Im not a League guy. Cuz one thing that gets left out is that game time trash talkin…I went to a Magic game last year and they were playin the Wizards. This was when they had Steve Blake.. I was sittin pretty close to the baseline (maybe 10 or 15 rows back) and a couple guys further up were sauced and talking loudly, heckling the bullshit outta Steve…So of course, we’re standing and Im watchin the whole thing go down…Steve reacts and starts sayin something to them I cant quite catch. Turns to Twan who was sittin next to him at the time, mumbles somethin an they start laughin as Twan looks over… Pretty harmless, right? Wrong! We’re talking about semi-broke, mostly-drunk fans here. So the heckling continues and I start laughin. (I was standin up cuz of some play on the court so it was kinda a coincidence). We make eye contact and he gives me this look like he’s gonna pull an Artest on ME! Like Im small or somethin, so I looked at him back and said “what the fuck is you lookin at?” (what else could I say, right?) Note: We weren’t close enough to hear each other, but close enough to read each other’s lips. Now, at this point, I’m also reachin semi-drunk (though I got sense) and Im just doin the tale of the tape right. Im about 6′6″ myself about 210 at the time and I’ve been in martial arts since I was 9. Im thinkin, hmmm, in a fight, I’d proly wreck this little dude…He may score 30 on me, but in a scrap I’d definitely fuck up his afternoon… Now this is me, a SENSIBLE dude..Imagine that with the wrong player and wrong fan. That’s another way shit gets escalated..It starts in the arena and then sparks off in the clubs later than night, cuz best believe me an my boi hit the clubs that night (lookin for biddies, not fights). And this is really dangerous for players cuz yeah you talk ya little shit from the safety of the court to a nameless face in the crowd. No recognition happens at all. out of all the thousands of faces players see at a game it’d be impossible to recall them all and which ones said what, and which one’s seemed like they could be trouble. We as fans dont have this problem. In fact we could spot a NBA’er (most true fans) in the grocery store just as easily as in a dark ass club, so while it may be some “unknown” citizen to the Player, its that “piece of whatever whatever player that was talkin all that ish on the court” to a disgruntle, hungry citizen/fan/thug/whatever with just enough money for a weapon. So its a tough situation for these players, but in some instances they don’t help themselves out cuz they kinda think their untouchable (kinda hard to blame em when we dick ride em from jr. high). Not really the way you endear yourself to the “common folk”. Cuz I look at it this way, yes, Ron Ron is crazy, but we’ve never heard of him beefin wit people outside the arena or in a club. Sheed has never been one to hold his tongue, but he’s a “people’s player” and knows how to stay outta trouble…You can’t be walkin around dudes all high and mighty like you can’t get hurt, cuz it will happen… Stephen could use a few pointers obviously..
Oct.27 at 10:29 am
Khalid Salaam says:
Yeah Russ.
” I Gave U Power” is easily a classic. real heads recognize.
Oct.27 at 10:34 am
Khalid Salaam says:
Good post Shiz. Obviously it’s a tricky situation, i wish there was a simple answer.
Oct.27 at 10:39 am
Boing Dynasty says:
I wish more inatoment objects had thought of thier own.
1
Oct.27 at 10:51 am
CASHVILLE says:
“It Was Written” is my favorite Nas album. I appreciate the verse Russ.
Oct.27 at 3:02 pm
O'Neezy says:
To Will: It may have already been addressed (I kind of skipped the other posts after I read yours). I don’t think banning guns (or perhaps I should say stricter gun control) is going to stop gun violence in Canada, the US, or anywhere else on Earth for that matter . There have been a few cases over the last 10 years or so where Toronto area police officers have shot and even fatally wounded individuals while protecting themselves. Most people are ok with that.
Steven Jackson is being charged at (and hit) by a machine that weighs several thousand pounds and can move disproportionately faster than him, fires several shots in the air and everyone is outraged? I don’t quite understand (unless I am missing some details of what happened). It seemed pretty deliberate that he shot in the air and not at someone.
Banning firearms for civilians means that someone else (militia, police force, army) has all the firepower and thus all the control. If someone wants to shoot somebody and enough demand is available, a market will open up for them, whether the gun is legal or on the black market.
There are deeper issues at hand for NBA teams (and society) to deal with these issues rather than knee-jerk responses.
(BTW, I am terrified of guns)
Oct.30 at 7:50 am
bja says:
Reading this makes me grateful I’m from a country (New Zealand) where handguns are illegal for anybody to carry. Even cops have to get special permission to carry a gun.
I’m living in London and cops need special permission for guns here too. However, the anti-terrorist police have wrongfully shot two people (one fatally) in the last year.
Oct.31 at 1:11 am
Omar says:
I support people having guns (Coming from me does that really shock anyone?), but i don’t support these KFC idiots with greasy hands carrying biscuits. NBA players and entertainers in general might be “role models” or whatever, but they reserve the right to protect themselves. I live in the hood (Brooklyn stand up!) and everyone and they grandmama got burners, and we ain’t even rich, but it’s a necessary. Everyone knows you gotta protect your home and your family. Especially in an environment where better than 60 percent of men between the ages of 14-30 don’t have jobs and gotta eat. A wise man knows that a burner is essential to survival in the concrete jungle. Cause for every wise man with a gun, there’s 5 idiots with a biscuit. And that’s just real talk.
Dec.8 at 1:08 pm
Ken says:
It is NOT legal to carry handguns in this country. It is legal to own one for protection in your home. It is not legal to carry one on the street or in your car.Why is that so hard for anyone to see?