September 2, 2002

The recent media frenzy over the possibility of a Major League Baseball player strike has brought to light an important question: What is the current relationship between professional athletes and the fans who watch them?

Many years ago, players and fans in their community shared a tight bond -- or so I’ve heard. I’m sure you’ve all read countless articles about cities like Milwaukee and Green Bay that embraced athletes playing for teams like the Braves and the Packers. Whether these stories have been exaggerated by nostalgic journalists is not a question I can answer. There is no question, however, that players and fans are further apart than they once were.

There are a number of possible explanations for the change in player-fan relationships. An easy place to put the blame is on the high salaries commanded by modern athletes; even the minimum salaries in leagues like the NBA ($349,458 is the rookie minimum for the 2002-03 season) put professional athletes in the upper class. That may make it more difficult for fans to relate to players.

Another possible explanation is that athletes have less opportunity to connect with the community. One component of this is that players change teams far more frequently on average than they did prior to the advent of free agency. Since the 2000-01 season, 69.2% of the Sonics’ roster (nine out of 13 players) has turned over; since the 1999 season, 86.7% (13 out of 15) has changed. Few players have the opportunity to put down the kind of roots in the community that would foster a close relationship. Even the one veteran Sonic, Gary Payton, spends the vast majority of his off-season outside of Seattle -- another potential wedge driven between fans and players.

Much as we may want to, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that there is a wide disparity between the backgrounds of players and fans that extends beyond income. The vast majority of NBA players are African-Americans while the fans -- at least those at games (and probably those surfing the internet to read about their team) are primarily Caucasian. Many players grew up in urban environments while few in the crowd can say the same. This too presents a potential difficulty in relating to the players.

What characterizes the modern relationship between players and fans? One important aspect to keep in mind is that much of that relationship is carried out only indirectly, with the media acting as a conduit. Few, if any, of us interact directly with players for anything more than brief periods of time. What we know of their personality and their character, then, is usually based on what we read second-hand.

As a result, I’m hesitant to judge players unless there are extraordinary circumstances or I have had the opportunity to speak with them, at least in a forum like the Sonics booster club meetings I attend. It’s not that I distrust the media -- well, maybe a little -- but rather that it’s a personal rule of mine not to judge people based on hearsay.

The fact remains that as unbiased as reporters may attempt to be in their writing, their personal opinions will filter into their stories. Witness the analysis of the Vin Baker trade; while newcomers Percy Allen of the Times and Danny O’Neil of the Post-Intelligencer toed the company line, writing about how the Sonics would miss their only post threat, Frank Hughes in the News-Tribune told a different story. His commentary the day after the trade became official, declaring Baker the worst Sonic in history, was not only a priceless example but an informative lesson. While Hughes is not one to pull any punches, could he have written the same column knowing that he would have to work with Baker on a regular and professional basis next season?

Although there are many players that ignore the media, there are surely those who monitor any mention of their name in the local papers. A beat writer doesn’t really have the scope of responsibility that they can offend a player too badly, but when that same writer also works as a columnist -- as Hughes does for not only the News-Tribune but also ESPN.com -- one job may well affect the other. There are two ways that I see this happening. One is that the writer may temper his opinion of a player to preserve their relationship for interviews. Some fans accused Nunyo Demasio, the former Times beat writer, of doing this when he defended Baker in his league-wide Sunday column. Oppositely, a poor relationship between player and writer in the locker room might cause the writer cum columnist to lash out unfairly. More than one reader has accused Hughes of a vendetta against Payton, though Hughes strongly denied this in an e-mail to a SonicsCentral reader, stating, “I have no deal with Payton. . . . I am not a fan, I am a reporter.”

Alright, I’ve drifted off track, but the point remains -- don’t believe everything you read, especially here.

One interesting byproduct of strike talk is that I now believe that an important component of the relationship between fans and players is that players quote unquote “owe” the fans something. That much was evident from the claims that players were taking away the World Series. I may be in the minority here, but I don’t feel I’m owed anything by anyone. Watching the Sonics or any other team is, to me, a privilege, not a right.

Perhaps that stems from my belief that fans are observers of, not participants in, athletic competition. Without question, fans play a role -- what else is home-court advantage? -- but in the end I see us as little more a part of the game than the crowd at a television taping is. One result of this belief is that I am loathe to use the term ‘we’ when talking about a sports team, and I must confess this is something that bothers me from others. The players are ‘we’, the front office is ‘we’, and perhaps even staffers are ‘we’. For fans, however, the team is ‘them’ in my book, with the exception of UW sports teams. After all, my logic goes, it is the University of Washington’s football team -- and I am a part of the University. The Sonics? Not ‘we’ unless they hire me.

In addition to playing and playing hard, there are those who think that players owe us the courtesy of behaving themselves off the court or field. This might not be any different than the ‘good old days’; maybe the only difference is that the media now gives us a better chance of calling players on their actions. Personally, this school of thought makes me hearken back to a discussion we had in my Theory of Knowledge class back at Mt. Rainier High School. A point was made that it is necessary to separate the art from the artist. I can’t recall who made this point or what it was in relation to, but it’s stuck with me for two and a half years and I think it is applicable here. I can appreciate the play of Ruben Patterson even if I’m not sure about the quality of his character (multiple run-ins with the law would fall under the extraordinary circumstances I referenced earlier). That’s not meant to excuse bad behavior by athletes, but to put it into its proper perspective. Everyone has their choices to make in life, and the fact that a person is supremely athletically talented should not change the standards we hold them to.

Here’s another idea that bothered me. One of the recent articles at Hoopsworld.com had an abstract (I didn’t read the article itself) that insinuated the Atlanta Hawks ought to be making moves right now so the fans didn’t get bored. Are you kidding me? Yeah, I really think that ought to be Wally Walker et. al.’s first consideration.

[imaginary conversation]
Wally Walker: Our research indicates our fans are bored.
Rick Sund: Well, we better sign somebody.
Nate McMillan: Right. So what if we don’t need anybody. We must give the fans something to discuss!
Walker: I bet bringing in Dennis Rodman would be interesting. . . .
Sund: Seconded!
[/imaginary conversation]

Then, too, there has been some complaining about how long Rashard Lewis is taking to make his decision. Right, because that really does have a big impact on your life. Lewis is only making the biggest decision of his life thus far -- can’t he worry about your timetable? Let’s remember whose lives these are, please.

I previously referenced salaries as a key issue in the player-fan relationship, but I think they bear more discussion. Not only do high salaries make it difficult for many fans to relate to players, there are also many fans who, in my opinion, begrudge players their salaries. You can almost feel the contempt dripping in the words of many fans when they talk about player salaries. It’s my harsh opinion that those who truly do dislike athletes because of the money they make shouldn’t be watching. At the least, I feel that the fan has to accept the pay of pro athletes as a given. Personally, as a believer in the power of the free market, I have no problem whatsoever with the money that players make. They are uniquely talented individuals whose skills are rare and in great demand . . . well, maybe not Jim McIlvaine.

There’s an interesting comparison to be made between what I’ve experienced following the Sonics most of my life and what I’ve experienced and read about following the Storm this summer.

Without question, the relationship between fans and players is closer in the WNBA than it is in the NBA. Looking through some of the points I’ve made, this seems only natural. Salaries aren’t anywhere near the issue in the WNBA that they are in the NBA; even the best-paid players make less than the Art Longs and Ansu Sesays of the NBA. The backgrounds of WNBA players, at the risk of generalizing, skew higher class than their NBA counterparts. And oft overlooked is the fact that the WNBA’s current structure means that stars are almost certain to play most of their career with the same team. It’s remarkably strange to watch Lauren Jackson and Sue Bird and realize that the Storm is guaranteed to have these two stars as long as it wants them, especially in light of the current situation with the Sonics, with the team’s two most-tenured players (Lewis and Payton) both possibly on the way out.

The difference, however, extends far beyond these three contrasting features of the two leagues. Storm fans casually chat with the team’s players and even their relatives. Strong as the feeling of ‘we’ with the team is in general, it is remarkable with these fans. One reason I think that last statement is true is that there is a certain feeling of all being in the fight to gain respect for the WNBA together. Much as fans like to think that we’re needed, we’re not -- by the Sonics. Whether I follow the team or not, whether I run a website or not, they’re still going to thrive. For a team that had the attendance problems the Storm did last season, every fan counts, and Stormfans.org is a crucial marketing tool.

The other key difference, in my opinion, is simply scope. Even Storm fans noted that at the team’s season ticket holder party, Bird seemed relatively reclusively. With good reason; she’s been running the media gauntlet all year, with all eyes on her as the savior -- not only of the Storm, but perhaps the entire league. However, that attention cannot compare to the media scrutiny a player like Payton has been under for the last decade. At similar events for the Sonics, Payton gets mobbed. Is it any wonder he’s hesitant to interact with fans?

I’m not sure if I’ve learned anything myself about the player-fan dynamic from pouring my thoughts about it out on paper, except maybe this -- it’s a complicated relationship, and it’s not about to get any easier.

Kevin Pelton has served as beat writer, columnist, editor, copy editor, and webmaster for SonicsCentral.com since its inception. He also writes a weekly column for Hoopsworld.com and is a student at the University of Washington in his spare time. The Candid Corner is updated every Monday. Kevin can be reached at kpelton@sonicscentral.com. All opinions expressed in this column are solely the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of other columnists or the SonicsCentral.com staff.

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