Straw Chewing Banned

[Birdbrain]

During the games?  Isn't that unsafe?  Sounds like a good idea to not play a game of basketball with something hanging out of your mouth that you could swallow and choke on.

This reminds of UL Washington and his toothpick.

Lottery pick in 2002 /= 12 years in the NBA.

[guava_wrench]

Playing Devil's advocate, it would look pretty dumb if one of these guys swallowed and choked to death on a straw. Sorry but I work in quality assurance for a toy company so choking hazards are always on my mind  .

That being said it is not the league's place to ban them. The team however should have a particular interest in this if they think their players are endangering themselves.

It sounds silly but if enough people do something dumb like chew a plastic straw while running around, someone will get hurt.

So basically, the league office never know about this for 12 years.

That sounds difficult to believe, but if that's really what happened, then it still irks me, but I suppose I'll lose less sleep. Not a lot of sleep, but less sleep none the less.

It was probably a reaction to the whole team doing it even in mockery. The more people do it the greater the chance something happens. Heck maybe the joke on Butler got a little press and someone in the commishioners office said, "Hey when you think about it, thats kind of dangerous" and they David agreed and banned it. I completely agree that it is dumb and they have more things to be worried about. Im just trying to come up with a reason since the NBA didnt provide one.

Also, straw chewing is highly offensive in some cultures. It doesnt fit in well with the NBA's global marketing scheme.

What culture is that?

Everything is offensive somewhere. Ban cheerleaders without covered heads first. Non-stop alcohol ads? Straws would be way down on that list.

[bdm860]

Straw chewing should really be the least of that league's worries right now.

Much bigger fish to fry...Economics, labor strife, image problems, etc...

Nah see this is genius, Stern is thinking many moves ahead.  Fast forward to the upcoming labor talks:

Stern/Owners:  We want a hard cap, decrease in salaries, increase in age limit, shorter contracts, and a bigger share of the revenue.

Players Union: If we give all that what do we get back?

Stern/Owners:  We'll give you straw chewing.

Players Union: Deal!

You got to give to get fellas 

[Amonkey]

I would like the league to take on some bigger fishes like the refereeing inconsistency rather than this thing.  This is what makes fans angry.  The league will take on little issues that has no effect on the game just because they don't like it yet they completely ignore the fans that are questioning about the refs.

[guava_wrench]

I would like the league to take on some bigger fishes like the refereeing inconsistency rather than this thing.  This is what makes fans angry.  The league will take on little issues that has no effect on the game just because they don't like it yet they completely ignore the fans that are questioning about the refs.

I don't believe it is possible to do much about missed calls.

Past experience has also shown that trying to get all refs to act the same backfires. We are dealing with a perception issue that fans will continue to have no matter how refs perform. Look at someone like Tommy, who consistently gets calls completely wrong while actually having a monitor in front of him showing him replays.

NBA games have way too many decision points for refs to decide whether a violation has occurred. The fact that so many fans blow calls while watching instant replays should make it obvious that the ceiling is low for potential ref call accuracy when the game is played at NBA speed. It would be interesting to see a study of the relationship between fan disapproval of refs and fan rate of bad/missed calls while watching a game.

On the other hand, it is quite easy to tell if someone is actually chewing a straw.

[Amonkey]

I would like the league to take on some bigger fishes like the refereeing inconsistency rather than this thing.  This is what makes fans angry.  The league will take on little issues that has no effect on the game just because they don't like it yet they completely ignore the fans that are questioning about the refs.

I don't believe it is possible to do much about missed calls.

Past experience has also shown that trying to get all refs to act the same backfires. We are dealing with a perception issue that fans will continue to have no matter how refs perform. Look at someone like Tommy, who consistently gets calls completely wrong while actually having a monitor in front of him showing him replays.

NBA games have way too many decision points for refs to decide whether a violation has occurred. The fact that so many fans blow calls while watching instant replays should make it obvious that the ceiling is low for potential ref call accuracy when the game is played at NBA speed. It would be interesting to see a study of the relationship between fan disapproval of refs and fan rate of bad/missed calls while watching a game.

On the other hand, it is quite easy to tell if someone is actually chewing a straw.

I disagree.  It's not just about the calls, it's about the same refs that we all get to know by their names due to their incompetence and get no repercussion for it.  It's about senseless Ts gets given out.  It's about superstar treatments.  It's about coaches and players not allowed to say anything about the refs without getting fined.  It's about having refs staying in the spotlight to get a little bit more understanding why they do the things the way they do.  It's about having referee press conferences.  Theres a lot of things that can be done with refs to at least increase their credibility amongst the fans, not perception.

[screwedupmaniac]

David Stern has destroyed the NBA. It is not fun anymore...it's a dictatorship that needs intervention from a Commissioner who cares about the players and fans more than his personal preferences and protecting the refs.

[wdleehi]

You know, I am kind of worried now.


First, chewing straws.



Next, spray tans. 




Scali could be suspended till it wears off. 

[LarBrd33]

what's with the tiny blurb about the NBA not commenting on HGH blood testing?  That's kinda interesting. 

Could HGH explain why Dwight HOward and LeBron James are freaks?

[Michael Anthony]

what's with the tiny blurb about the NBA not commenting on HGH blood testing?  That's kinda interesting. 

Could HGH explain why Dwight HOward and LeBron James are freaks?

Bite your tongue! Why is it considered uncommon for the biggest, strongest guys on the court to also be the fastest and most agile?

[Finkelskyhook]

Fixed games....Superstar call bias....Sleazy trades.....

I can see why Stern would prioritize chewing straws.

[Lucky17]

Carom?

12th season?

LOL. Crack editing staff over at NBC Sports.

[Andy Jick]

Straw chewing is gang-related

Maybe they were laced with cocaine...

[Lucky17]

A required dress code, uniform regulations, zero-tolerance of criticism of referees, and now no straw chewing.

I look forward to the NBA of the future, when robots will battle for corporate-sponsored championship trophies.

[guava_wrench]

I would like the league to take on some bigger fishes like the refereeing inconsistency rather than this thing.  This is what makes fans angry.  The league will take on little issues that has no effect on the game just because they don't like it yet they completely ignore the fans that are questioning about the refs.

I don't believe it is possible to do much about missed calls.

Past experience has also shown that trying to get all refs to act the same backfires. We are dealing with a perception issue that fans will continue to have no matter how refs perform. Look at someone like Tommy, who consistently gets calls completely wrong while actually having a monitor in front of him showing him replays.

NBA games have way too many decision points for refs to decide whether a violation has occurred. The fact that so many fans blow calls while watching instant replays should make it obvious that the ceiling is low for potential ref call accuracy when the game is played at NBA speed. It would be interesting to see a study of the relationship between fan disapproval of refs and fan rate of bad/missed calls while watching a game.

On the other hand, it is quite easy to tell if someone is actually chewing a straw.

I disagree.  It's not just about the calls, it's about the same refs that we all get to know by their names due to their incompetence and get no repercussion for it.  It's about senseless Ts gets given out.  It's about superstar treatments.  It's about coaches and players not allowed to say anything about the refs without getting fined.  It's about having refs staying in the spotlight to get a little bit more understanding why they do the things the way they do.  It's about having referee press conferences.  Theres a lot of things that can be done with refs to at least increase their credibility amongst the fans, not perception.

The alleged incompetence is perception, not reality. Same with the superstar treatment idea.

It is a typical situation where people who believe something point to confirmations and conveniently ignore disconfirmations.