Etan Thomas: The Dawn Of A New Era
Wizards center and SLAMonline columnist Etan Thomas explains how the turmoil over the new ball is actually representative of something much deeper…
by Etan Thomas
There have been countless opinions expressed and articles written regarding the new ball. The overall perception seems to be that David Stern, out of the kindness of his heart, listened to a bunch of spoiled crybabies whine about not liking the ball, took pity on them and decided to give them their old ball back. As if it were some type of meaningless toy. Some of the articles and commentary have really surprised me, because so many people are ill-informed. Apparently, much of the public opinion was that we, the players, should be happy with whatever ball we use and should simply shut up and play.
Lets review the facts: The NBA decided to use the new synthetic ball this season without consulting the players. The ball was previously used in the All-Star Game, NBDL games and summer league games. Otherwise, the players were never exposed to the ball, and had no say in its implementation. After the players across the board reacted extremely negatively to the ball — claiming it was too slippery, bounced less than the old ball, that the spongy material created friction that irritated and caused cuts to player’s hands — the NBPA filed an unfair labor practice (ULP) charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
Under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), which is the statute that governs the relationship between labor and management, management must bargain with the union over three things: wages; hours; working conditions. We (the union) claimed that the NBA was not entitled to make such a fundamental change to our working conditions, unilaterally, without bargaining with the union.
Before the charge could be found to have merit or not, the NBA decided to change back to the leather ball, with the Commissioner conceding that he made a mistake and that the players should have been consulted before instituting such a significant change.
However, these facts were apparently unavailable to many reporters, columnists and commentators. They created the public perception that the players were once again unjustly complaining about something we weren’t happy with.
Creating an overall illusion — no matter how off base or completely wrong it is — can change the public perception of what is being implemented. Furthermore, it can garner support for something the implementer knows is wrong. We saw this with the invasion of Iraq, but that’s another essay. Knowledge is power, and people perish for lack of knowledge.
A wise man once said, “Know the business of the business you’re in.” It is imperative that my colleagues become fully aware and avoid a state of complacency. We cannot be trapped in an illusion that the fruits we enjoy now will forever be plentiful and abundant. Things can and will change right before our eyes if we don’t stand up and fight.
Now, don’t get me wrong, because it is an absolute blessing to play in the NBA. Every morning when I wake up, I thank God for allowing me to live a dream. This issue I’m writing about is not a matter of being ungrateful, a sentiment often attached to NBA players.
What Commissioner Stern will attempt to employ, if we allow him to, will devastate the future of our league as we know it. Collectively, we have a strong voice, but if we don’t understand the rules, how can we play the game? If we didn’t understand that legally David Stern was in direct violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement by changing the ball, we would have been rendered powerless. We would have been left to our complaints, which would have fallen on deaf ears.
What could possibly happen in the future could greatly exceed excessive technical fouls, the dress code, meaningless nagging about tucking in our shirts, wearing wrist bands below the elbow and the length of our shorts. If we don’t speak up now, it could get a lot worse.
The league would love to transform us into the NFL, and they will continue to attempt to chip away at guaranteed contracts. During his attempt to gain “cost certainty,” the Commissioner has previously offered during collective bargaining to simply pay one guaranteed amount and allow the players to divide it among ourselves — so long as the amount is fixed in advance, and the owners need not pay even a dollar more than the guaranteed amount. In essence, that would completely cut out the NBA’s middle class. (Interesting how there are so many parallels to a certain administration.)
The way things are structured now eats away at the owners, who must guarantee a player his salary even if he is not “earning” it. But what exactly is “earning it”?
If you get injured, do they want the right to cut you like in the NFL? They try to win players over during the bargaining process, arguing that guaranteed dollars paid to “undeserving” players takes away from the pool of available dollars that could be paid to “deserving” players. (This is similar to the argument that taxing the rich punishes them for being rich.) Meaning if you have a bad year, they can rip up your contract and force you to sign a new one or be waived, like in the NFL.
During this last Collective Bargaining negotiation, David Stern put an offer on the table saying that he would be willing to do completely do away with the salary cap if the players would agree to non-guaranteed contracts. Don’t think for a moment this proposal is not going to come up again.
No disrespect to Billy Hunter, because I think he is doing a wonderful job fighting for us, but I feel we should consider examining baseball’s example, maybe even actually having a sit-down with their union to see exactly what they did to make their group so strong. I look at their union with eyes of admiration, because that’s how a union should be. They don’t even think about getting licensing checks — that money is put into a fund just in case it’s needed in the future. We should do the same. We should only distribute them once a player retires. In addition, the baseball players are strict about players who act in ways that are detrimental to the union. If a player has a secret meeting when “they” pull you to the side to divulge information, or if a player speaks out of turn to the media (we should have a gag order) or crosses the line in any way, that player is out of the union. No longer protected nor allowed to partake in any of the benefits that come along with being in the union. We should have our own zero tolerance policy. We also need to get our international players involved in the union, being that our future is intertwined.
I now hold a seat on the NBA Player’s Association executive board, so I am going to do what I can to implement some of these changes and make our union as strong as it can possibly be. I feel that it should never have previously come to a lock out. If we don’t rebel, don’t voice our disapprovals, don’t know what we can legally do, don’t have a unified front, believe me, they will not listen. Nobody wants a lock out, but they have to know that we mean business. Then, it never even has to come to that. We can simply work together respectfully.
As NBA players, we collectively have to wake up and become aware. What type of league are we leaving for the future generations? For our children? There is not one player alive who wouldn’t want his son to follow in his footsteps, wear his number, attend his college, maybe even break one of his collegiate records and play in the NBA, just like his father. Players before us have made countless sacrifices in order for us to be able to enjoy the life we have.
It is imperative that we fight to preserve this league.
An untitled poem
Raising consciousness to the height of light and truth
Awareness takes on a breathing like necessity
Preparing to block the avoidable destiny
Altering the events that would present a dismal future
Security would be something of the past
Cast into the sea of a distant memory
We would become mirrored images of the national football league
Left to reminisce on the good old days
The previous ways in which we used to enjoy our individuality
The elapsed freedom of creativity
Giving birth to a seed of non threatening entities?
Soothing the need for Middle America’s level of comfortability
So smile for the camera and show that you care
Killing you softly as you stand unaware
Transformed into robotic machines
Emotionless clones
For the right amount can your soul be rendered?
Tattoos, cornrows, and dreads may be next on the agenda
I don’t need a crystal ball to interpret the monologues of the commissioners’ plans
I can see them clearly like a cloudless sky
Tap dancing has never been the ship that I’ve sailed
Together like a fist we can stand
All we have to do is rebel
Etan Thomas is a center for the Washington Wizards and a columnist for SLAMonline.com. You can order Etan’s book “More Than An Athlete” on amazon.com here and through his publisher here.
59 Responses to “Etan Thomas: The Dawn Of A New Era”
Dec.21 at 2:11 am
Justin Adler says:
This is awesome insight Etan, thanks for taking the time to give an often unheard perspective to the readers.
Dec.21 at 2:39 am
DT says:
Together, united, we will never be defeated! Nice essay Etan.
Dec.21 at 2:52 am
Sesa says:
Journalism to the new level.
Props!!!
Dec.21 at 3:02 am
kingstuffs says:
yo this guy is dam smart
much luv
Dec.21 at 3:16 am
Maha10k says:
Thanks Etan. I think you really call attention to the fact that labor unions are always painted in a bad light in the media. Fact is they are a necessity in industries (like sports) that operate as a sanctioned monopoly. Stern’s getting outlandish. NBA needs some new blood.
Why does Stern want to emulate the NFL? The violence is partly responsible for the larger audience. It seems to me that shoe companies do a better job of marketing the players and basketball as a sport than the NBA does. It also seems Stern is creating rules to corral behavior and styles that no one has a problem with. But there are no shortage of commentators willing to agree with him and address the NBA’s ‘image problem’
Dec.21 at 3:53 am
Froggiestyle says:
Thanks Ethan, once the union is settled, next stop universal health care. 1st World country with 3rd World social agenda.
Dec.21 at 4:24 am
Lebron James says:
Am i a spoiled crybaby?
Dec.21 at 4:37 am
Harlem World says:
Sterns first and most blatent obligation is to the owners. The players can be replaced, and though they represent the level to which the NBA will entertain, it is the owners to whom Stern in most answerable. This makes the need and relevancy of the players union imperative. I’d be very interested in looking at how the union is currently set up, what programs they run for players and what services they offer to members. With the cards stacked against the players in this business, what level of freedom does the union have in sending out media messages of its own, to counteract the (sometimes) subtle media feed the NBA puts out to influence public perception? Maybe someone should look into that…
Dec.21 at 6:13 am
P-MAC says:
Etan is an intelligent man, every player in the NBA should read this peace. I’m not saying every player should rebel but they should at least take a stand.
Dec.21 at 6:16 am
bja says:
Nice column Etan. I agree with the vast majority of your points but “if a player speaks out of turn to the media … or crosses the line in any way, that player is out of the union” sounds right out of the Stern playbook. For someone who clearly takes great pride in having the freedom to express his opinions, that seems a very heavy handed approach to me. Keep blogging, I enjoy the different perspective.
Dec.21 at 6:29 am
Bigi says:
Nice work Etan…And there’s one Tim Duncan in that poem…Hahaa!Peace.
Dec.21 at 7:46 am
Norway says:
I’d be willing to PAY money to be an NBA player. I’d be willing to play with a soccerball if necessary.
Dec.21 at 9:55 am
CM says:
Elegantly put. Deep.
Dec.21 at 10:06 am
Ron says:
Etan Thomas, you’re my hero!!!
Dec.21 at 10:36 am
H to the izzo says:
Great way of showing how David Stern and the NBA are thinking-The Players who are the ingredient needed for the NBA to be great are taking a back seat to corporate greed and the need for disgustingly rich people(the owners) to feel that their money is safe-I suppose its a case of the rich gets richer….
Dec.21 at 10:51 am
Mike Buie says:
That was a great and insightful. It just continues to show as fans we don’t know the half of what goes on behind the scences in the NBA.
Dec.21 at 11:48 am
Nico says:
I agree with some of what yo wrote. The new ball issue was handled very poorly by the NBA. But please stay away from the baseball model. It has to be the worst model in all of professional sports.
Dec.21 at 11:57 am
HIBACHI!!! says:
This is a great article that provides insight that many of us are not aware of. I must give respect to Etan Thomas for putting together this masterpiece, and to SLAMONLINE for allowing it to be heard. Mr. Thomas would you have gone into journalism or politics had the NBA not worked out for you? Just curious…
Dec.21 at 12:13 pm
Guy Miz says:
Slam, you are doing a great public service by getting Etan’s writing out to a mass audience. Etan, long may you stay in the league, expressing yourself all the while. When you eventually leave the league, long may your voice continue to be heard.
Dec.21 at 1:25 pm
Maha10k says:
Baseball has a good union but bad owners. Baseball has no salary cap and veteran players get salary arbitration. Only a few small market teams have figured out how to play the game to be competitive. Some of those teams should be relegated to AAA.
Dec.21 at 1:30 pm
Celtic Fan says:
First off, hats off to Slam, this is one of the best things you have done. Allowing one of the more articulate players to have a strong voice to basketball fans all over the world. 2nd this is a great piece.
I didn’t for one second think the NBA players were unjustly complaining about the ball. It affects their performance and should have been consulted on it. The dress code, zero tolerance for complaining, arm bands etc, are rules I agree the league can change because it doesn’t directly affect the on court product and the players have to live with those changes, just like any other employee has to live with in their workplace.
Dec.21 at 2:12 pm
Doc says:
Etan, you are a smart brother, and while you definitely understand the concept of self-interest, I also believe you must understand the other side of the argument. Without “cost certainty:, which you seem to dismiss as an evil concept, there will be no NBA…at the end of the day, the NBA is a business, and players, rightfully, are by far the highest paid employees. I defy you to find another business where the labor cost of 1% of a business’ total employees exceeds 50% of total revenues. (in the NBA its 57%) Owners have to make a profit, either in the operation of the team or the sale of the team (ideally both), in order to keep the league in business. If they don’t, they will not buy teams, which then will not be funded, teams will bleed money because of inflexible player contracts, and ladies and gentlemen, you have…the Detroit auto industry. And the NFL is Toyota. Many NBA teams lose money every year, and players are banding together to try and get even MORE millions while teams can barely afford to hire an extra ticket sales rep? You talk about greedy owners…how about greedy players? Fans complain about higher ticket prices…but why do you think teams have to jack prices up so high? To cover their astonishingly high player costs. The players are getting more than their fair share already, Stern is simply trying to make the NBA an operable business just like any other profitable enterprise.
Dec.21 at 3:01 pm
Harlem World says:
Doc, I’m not totally buying that. ‘More than their fair share’? What would say is a fair share? Ultimately an owner/franchise isn’t going to pay what it can’t afford and if they run their business correctly, anything they do pay players should constitute an INVESTMENT in increasing the VALUE of their business.
The question of cost certainty is also an interesting one. While players contracts are openly discussed and scrutinized by the media, why is it franchise profit margins and business performance indexes are not put under the same microscope?
If it’s been proven that a franchise can be financially successful even if they are not in one of the primary media markets (say, Dallas, for example) and the performance of the franchise is largely due to the efficiency/proficiency of the management group running it - then don’t blame diminishing returns on the players…get management to STEP THEIR GAME UP!
Dec.21 at 3:42 pm
Tch92 says:
…And while all you extremely intelligent men take so much time and passion to discuss such crucial matters, 80% of the world population is STARVING. Ethan, can’t you put your energy to better use?
Dec.21 at 3:42 pm
Max Airington says:
Both of you guys make solid points, but I gotta ride with Harlem on this one. While I can name a dozen ridiculous NBA contracts off the top of my head, I have no idea how said contracts fiscally affect their respective teams since those numbers are nowhere to be found. Managment obviously paid this money out cause they felt they could absorb the blow, so when things dont work out as planned, dont retroactively blame the player for seeking as much as possible.
Dec.21 at 3:45 pm
Max Airington says:
Tch92, would you like to be known as the pot or the kettle? Besides, we discuss world politics and starvation on Tuesdays. Idiot.
Dec.21 at 3:50 pm
noah says:
Everyone throw your biggest words back at Etan Thomas!
Dec.21 at 3:53 pm
marcel mutoni says:
max, that was hilarious.
Dec.21 at 3:56 pm
Max Airington says:
I do try sometimes.
Dec.21 at 4:05 pm
Max Airington says:
Actually Mutoni, THIS is hilarious. Fan or not, for two minutes and forty one seconds, you WILL respect Justin Timberlake. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAsXLCkjRhI
Dec.21 at 5:20 pm
The Real Mongoose says:
Oh, I hope we can adopt a plan similar to baseball. I am a Laker fan and we could reach the finals every year! Stop complaining about the rich getting richer in basketball. Everybody involved is rich.
Dec.21 at 5:32 pm
Cheryl says:
You’re a funny man, Max. I love it!
Dec.21 at 6:11 pm
TheHype says:
let’s get a “Tch92-in-a-box” for christmas!
Dec.21 at 6:26 pm
Harlem World says:
Tch92…put time to better use? Like responding to you as you’d like, right? Do you realize as I type this the ozone layer is being depleted, someone just got mugged, someone just contracted HIV and somone just took the last sip of juice and left the box in the fridge. Life is so unfair.
Dec.21 at 6:54 pm
Andrew says:
Thanks for the insight, Etan. Every player needs to take a stand and educate themselves as much as possible in order for their rights to be protected.
Dec.21 at 8:12 pm
JOE says:
ETAN NEEDS HIS OWN COLUMN IN THE MAGAZINE AS WELL. PLEASE THINK ABOUT IT
Dec.22 at 12:10 am
Dallas J. says:
Sternbot slams fist on large conference table.
Etan must be destroyed.
Dec.22 at 2:58 am
Brendan H. says:
Etan, I’m waiting for you in the locker room. Quit writing those columns, and come fight like a man.
Dec.22 at 5:08 pm
Alphabet says:
Good article, and it’s dope that it’s coming from someone who lives it, instead of cats from the sidelines giving they opinion. Good job Etan letting them know not to belive the hype.
Dec.23 at 2:00 pm
Sports=Politics says:
Great piece. It is often forgotten by the average fan that pro players are in fact workers just like themselves, and as such, are vulnerable to exploitation by their bosses (team owners & Stern in this case). Pro player unions need to make more noise. How about showing some solidarity with other unions in different industries outside of the pro sports arena? I know it seems far fetched, but just imagine the NBA staging a sympathy strike in solidarity with, say, AFSCME or UFW…crazy.
Dec.23 at 4:37 pm
D'Arkangel says:
Wonderful and insightful column! I couldnt agree more that the league is headed in the wrong direction. Hopefully the players will band together and fight a unified cause. But I can’t help but think that sometimes-and only sometimes- the players seems to make it easy for Stern to exert his tyrannical powers over the league (ref. New York incident from last week). I’m all for cornrows, tattoos, less technical fouls, higher salaries, old ball, longer shorts, less nagging to tuck in jerseys and what not. But players need to get their heads out of their a$$#s and act right. All these arguments are thrown out the window when these athletes who double as some of our favorite role models take it upon themselves to embarass themselves. Hopefully this is another wrong that can be righted. Once again, great article Etan and merry xmas everyone. God Bless
A.M.S.
Dec.23 at 8:00 pm
BETCATS says:
Brendan H (its spelled Haywood) i know u r some 12 year old who thinks he is cool so let me give u some advice DONT USE A MUTHER FUCKIN NBA PLAYERS NAME and think the other nba player u r callin out is gonna respond to the real deal because black-on-black violence needs to stop
Dec.23 at 10:58 pm
TKJC says:
Etan will be great for the player’s union. However, if there is a lock out in the near future then I am blaming him…. I really enjoy Etan’s column here at Slamonline. Perhaps he should get Agent Zero to contribute a little, that would be awesome.
Dec.26 at 12:58 am
sush carter says:
Etan Thomas in 2008 - Buck Fush
Dec.26 at 10:04 pm
BETCATS says:
sush carter its ok nobody is gonna tell mommy. you can write fuck bush alllthough buck fush is kind of intrestin
Dec.26 at 10:04 pm
BETCATS says:
sush carter its ok nobody is gonna tell mommy. you can write fuck bush alllthough buck fush is kind of intrestin
Dec.28 at 11:40 am
ray or myspace.com/vahustle703 says:
ETAN SHOULD BE THE NEW COMMISIONER….. WHATS FAIR IS FAIR…..WHATS NOT FAIR IS NOT FAIR…. AND I THINK ETAN GOT HIS HEAD RIGHT WHERE IT NEEDS TO BE AS FAR AS NBA RULES REGS AND OUTSIDE THE LINE STUFF GOES
Dec.31 at 5:58 am
sportsconflict says:
Etan said What Commissioner Stern will attempt to employ, if we allow him to, will devastate the future of our league as we know it…If we didn’t understand that legally David Stern was in direct violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement by changing the ball, we would have been rendered powerless…. What could possibly happen in the future could greatly exceed excessive technical fouls, the dress code, meaningless nagging about tucking in our shirts, wearing wrist bands below the elbow and the length of our shorts…. The league would love to transform us into the NFL, and they will continue to attempt to chip away at guaranteed contracts. This recent sports law review article speaks directly to the second paragraph of Etan’s comments above. It comes from Prof. Michael McCann, a regular contributor to the “Sports Law Blog” http://sports-law.blogspot.com/ The Reckless Pursuit of Dominion: A Situational Analysis of the NBA and Diminishing Player Autonomy MICHAEL MCCANN
Mississippi College School of Law
University of Pennsylvania Journal of Labor and Employment Law, Vol. 8, p. 819, 2006 Abstract:
This Article examines required genetic testing of NBA players from a situational vantage point, integrating socio-psychological, legal, and ethical analyses. The core argument may be expressed as follows: required genetic testing of NBA players appears consistent with a broader and largely deleterious agenda by the NBA to control players. Since implementation of the rookie wage scale in 1995 through the recent imposition of a paternalistic player dress code, the NBA has increasingly usurped player autonomy. The NBA’s capacity to do so largely rests in its adroit manipulation of the situational influences that influence fans and media. For instance, because of unappreciated cognitive biases, fans and media often embrace distorted views of player’s maturity, arrest propensity, and collegiate experiences. As a result, NBA players tend to be wrongly identified as immature, out-of-control, and hopelessly uneducated. In turn, the NBA has designed policies that ostensibly remedy these feigned problems while less-detectably transferring autonomy from player to league. In short, the league sees that others often fail to see, and that enables it to surreptitiously control players.
Jan.4 at 4:52 pm
Natsman says:
Etan, Based on your scoring average, you should focus on your practice reps, instead of the size of the ball. Secondly, most of the people reading your comments don’t enjoy the luxury of guaranteed contracts. They don’t enjoy the luxury of pulling a Kwame Brown by underperforming like a punk with an attitude, yet still getting the guaranteed gazillion dollar contract because his employer has little leverage otherwise. NBA Middle Class?! Wow, our hearts bleed for ya. You managed to make this issue over the ball evolve into a threat over your swell being. Frankly, NBA owners probably would want to protect themselves by doing away with guaranteed contracts if they could. Why are they The Devil incarnate for thinking that way? They’re protecting their best interests. Do you think guaranteed contracts have the fans best interest at heart? If so, please enlighten us. Because i don’t see why you’re bothering fans with this nonsense.
Jan.4 at 5:51 pm
Natsman says:
This column by Etan is sickening. Nothing like a mega million dollar athlete penning a 3 billion word essay that is completely & utterly SELF INDULGENT. Etan, you are so OUT OF TOUCH with most of the folks reading this slop it is hilarious. Why? Etan, you really think that most of the “regular folks” reading this have any sympathy for the “financial woes” of multi-million dollar athletes as you perceive them to be? Why is that? And the perils that may come upon NBA players if they, uhhh, don’t get guaranteed contracts (i.e. - have to not “underperform”, a term which he conveniently plays with the meaning of). Predictably, Etan shudders at the suggestion that an owner could rip up a player’s contract because that player underperformed - SHOCKING. Expecting someone to deliver what they promise?! Those NFL players are idiots, & those NFL owners are tyrants, aren’t they? He goes on to mention his admiration for the MLB players’ union. Not a surprise, since their union is the most powerful of any pro sport. I would bet that most millionaire NBA players look down on most “regular joe” fans, & sneer at them. For obvious reasons. Which is why it’s apparent that this essay by Etan should go into the “Who The F Cares” file.
Jan.7 at 9:50 am
Harlem World says:
“Natsman Says:
January 4th, 2007 at 4:52 pm Etan, Based on your scoring average, you should focus on your practice reps, instead of the size of the ball.” STILL laughing at that line. Thats some funny isht.
Jan.14 at 3:12 pm
Gilbert0 says:
Etan is very smart, I think he should have a spot to write in the magazine.
Jan.29 at 10:58 am
Dave says:
Etan, I am a union worker as well. I fight for me mand my colleagues to make more than seven dollars an hour. We also wish that our shifts at work would not be separated by five hours “pauses”. We work 10-12 hours a day. We either don’t get paid when underproducing. Your “struggle” as a “worker” obviously makes me smile.
But still. You guys are probably more exploited than I am: they make millions out of your work. If they pay y’all so much, it’s because they make 10 times that money out of your work. Y’all deserve your fair share. If only it wasn’t to buy 10 bentleys and a 4000 acres house with a pool in the dining room… people die of hunger in africa, which is most of y’all’s ancestors motherland. And I’m not even talking about those who die of benign illnesses in y’all’s childhood hoods.
Fuck y’all egoism.
Carmelo donated two or so millions to his old (super rich) college. For scholarships to poor students? Nooo! For a new fucking state of the art practice facility, for goddamn basketball. Don’t get me wrong, I love the game, but I wish it could allow more than 300 families (the player’s families) to get out of the hood. It is not enough, especially when you think about all the lives that basketball’s money destroys. The kids that don’t make it to the leaugue, who graduate with a fake diploma I don’t envy their lives.
Feb.15 at 8:35 pm
Steve says:
It’s refreshing to hear your perspective. Esecially when some players coast through school, or don’t even finish their degree. It’s good to know someone educated is representing the players and the fans. Did anyone see Carmelo do the top 50 moments in basketball with Bill Walton? Dude can’t even read cue cards
Feb.16 at 6:54 pm
Brendan Haywood says:
Don’t listen to any bull this guy writes
Feb.17 at 2:16 pm
Iversonbrotha says:
love your point of view, Etan. Why would David Stern even think about changing from the leather ball that everybody has played with since 1891?
Feb.23 at 12:53 pm
David says:
Its funny you know…. NBA players are being controlled more than they ever were and its crazy becuase to me it is just another form of slavery especially to these African American players.. Take away the things that they loved growing up playing this game and see how man tickets u can sell then Mr.Stern P.S. A good read 40milliond dollar slaves
Mar.7 at 8:34 pm
1hush D says:
Nice Etan. An injury to one is an injury to all. If anyone decides they would like to place some content on a website that I own (dumpdavidstern.com) but don’t manage, let me know. The guy is responsible for the corporatization of the game and he sucks big time. I’ll be happier when he is long gone.
Aug.30 at 5:41 am
MimzySerena says:
Just couldn’t go without saying thanks for the words of encourgement. and no I can’t see Shaq,or the rest of the magic at least what use to be the magic holding a sympathy fest although I know the original team. I am pissed and when I get pissed nothing stops me, I have more financial clout than they have and I know who runs this silicon company so I am not to worried. Jennifer Anniston even sent me a message her and Jennifer Lopez, had no idea they had profiles here go figure. Oh well max wish me luck, check out my profiles when you come to the first one you have to click on profile under my profile pick just the word profile to get to my real profile isn’t that just insane. Nice to have met you Max and add me keep in touch see who wins bet on me I am. MySpace.com/Mimzyserena