Friday, August 17, 2007

David Stern Should Resign

ESPN Radio 1050 in New York broke the story today that Tim Donaghy has apparently agreed to give Federal Investigators information on up to 20 other NBA officials who have participated in some form of gambling.

If what is being reported turns out to be true, then it means that several other NBA officials have broken the rules. The report never said anything about any other NBA officials being under investigation, nor did it say anything about any other NBA officials betting on NBA games. The report was actually pretty vague. But, it does present David Stern with a bigger problem than the one he has already allowed to develop. What is the "little man" going to do if all 20 of these NBA referees have indeed broken this sacred rule? I think it is pretty obvious. If there is any actual proof that these refs gambled in any way then their employment should be terminated immediately. I wonder if David has the gonads to do it?

Even if I find out that the 20 NBA referees were actually betting on NBA games that they were officiating themselves, I would not be surprised. And you shouldn't be either. Have you watched an NBA game lately? The NBA hasn't had any credibility for years. I can't remember the last time I watched an NBA game and didn't think that the "fix" was in. The funny thing here is that Mark Cuban and most of the fans have bitching about the referees for years, but David Stern wouldn't listen. Just think, maybe if David had listened to Mark Cuban and started his own investigation way back when, this whole thing might have been avoided.

Let's be honest here. The credibility of the NBA is already crushed. The league doesn't have anywhere to go from here, but up. That is, unless they don't act swiftly to correct the problems that currently exist. Something drastic has to happen in order to regain the fans' trust. I think David Stern should accept responsibility for the monster he has created and he should step down in disgrace. The man simply has no credibility left. I am to the point where I don't believe a word that comes out of David Stern's mouth. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if Tim Donaghy announced tomorrow that David Stern was the guy who told him which games to fix.

The NBA needs to get rid of David Stern and bring in someone who is more believable. I don't think it should be too hard to find someone that the fans might trust more than David Stern. How about Vince McMahon? He could come in and change the League's name to the WWBA or the XBA.

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