There's No Crying In Basketball!

Today, I have a beef, but I'm not sure who to direct it at. I guess I'll just say I have a beef with all the athletes out there who also seem to have a part time job in whining, as well as the league front offices out there that continue to allow this bad behavior and serve as the worst parents in the world to these spoiled brats who are paid millions.

Two nights ago, Kendrick Perkins, of the Boston Celtics, got two technical fouls in Game 5 against the Magic. Perkins has been Dwight Howard's kryptonite for most of the series, as well as one of the most underrated players during these playoffs.

The first technical came when Perkins was helping up teammate Paul Pierce and the Magic's Marcin Gortat got a little bit closer to him than he apparently would have liked. As a result, Perkins gave Gortat a little elbow to the chest. The second technical came when Perkins contested a call made by Ed Rush, one of the most respected referees in the game, by throwing his hands up while looking at Crawford and then walking away shaking his head in disgust.

I realize that maybe these fouls didn't necessarily warrant a technical by usual NBA standards, but I have had enough of the whining that takes place after the referee makes a call across the game of basketball.

Complaining about bad calls is probably more widespread in basketball than in any other sport besides baseball, where yelling at the umpire, kicking dirt on his shoes and throwing little temper tantrums have become time-honored traditions. Heck, Braves manager Bobby Cox has been ejected close to 150 times in his career.

But basketball is different. There's no real precedent set for arguing calls. The usual protocol is that the elite players, veterans and the head coaches, are allowed to make their case through calm conversation during a stoppage of play, such as a free throw or during a timeout. Anything but yelling or throwing your hands in the air will basically keep you from getting a technical.

But, I have had enough of all of it. It has come to the point where almost every single time that the referee makes a call on some of these guys, they throw their hands up in the air, as if there is no possible way that they could have done anything wrong.

Hey, I have a suggestion! If you want to stay out of trouble, try this thing called controlling your anger. I know basketball is an emotional game with its fast pace, and its numerous ups and downs as teams trade baskets back and forth, but it really is not that difficult to keep your emotions in check.

The players aren't the only ones at fault here. The NBA is sending out what I believe to be a wrongful message in rescinding the second of Perkins' technical fouls, and is basically telling players to keep whining and crying not only over questionable calls but all calls made against them. The league usually fines anyone that criticizes the referees after the game, so why are they not cracking down on whining and criticism during the game as well?

No player should be allowed to talk back to the referees. That being said, conversation should be allowed, and is welcomed by all referees. But when a player, especially one like Kendrick Perkins, who has a knack for crying for his mommy over every foul called on him, keeps on whining like an over-privileged, spoiled brat, the NBA should punish him severely. If they don't, then like any actual spoiled, whiny brat, guys like Perkins, will never learn their lesson. If punishing Perkins means keeping him out for a pivotal game in the playoffs, so be it. The situation should not matter, the punishment should always fit the crime, whether it means missing a meaningless exhibition game or Game 6 of a conference finals.

It's not jut role players like Kendrick Perkins that should be punished either. Guys like Kobe Bryant (especially Kobe Bryant), with his famous arm flailing, Dwight Howard with his confused looks and moaning and Josh Smith who not only acts like a baby, but looks somewhat like one too, all of whom are stars in the league, should not have any more protection from technical fouls than anyone else. But no, the league is afraid of the uproar that would result from doing the right thing and giving them their stars the technical fouls that they deserve.

Is it fair that I'm essentially holding basketball to a higher standard than baseball? Maybe so, but that is because of the differences between the two games. In baseball, there are no fouls, just ejections, and therefore if you argue over anything with the umpire, you better get your money's worth as almost any argument will get you thrown out of the game. That's why you see mostly tirades in baseball, instead of the usual conversing with the referees, that you see in basketball. Tirades in baseball are expected and tolerated by the league as long as there is an ejection, while tirades in basketball aren't expected nor have ever been tolerated.

Another difference between the two are the types of calls being argued. In baseball, the calls being argued are usually either absolutely right or absolutely wrong, such as whether a runner was tagged or whether the ball was fair or foul. In basketball, most of the contested calls are fouls, and therefore judgment calls that the referees are paid to make. I realize umpires are paid to make calls in baseball as well, but it's tougher to be wrong about or argue a judgment call that has a vague answer or multiple answers than it is to be wrong about or argue an absolute call that has an absolute answer.

So sure, baseball players certainly should not have any more right to act like a bunch of kindergartners (sorry if I offended any kindergarten readers out there) than basketball players, but there is at least some precedent for it in baseball. If the NBA really wants to protect its referees from criticism, as commissioner David Stern constantly says and shows he wants to do by issuing fines to anyone with anything bad to say about them, then maybe they should show their initiative and tell stars like Kobe and Dwight that if they are not going to talk to the refs like normal adults, then maybe they'd like the view better from the bench in street clothes rather than the court in a jersey.