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The Direction of Sports

In: Social Issues

Submitted By ml2011
Words 963
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The Direction of Sports
As a sports fan I am concerned about the directions sports have taken. Sports in general have been headed in the wrong direction for some time now. They still have a lot of time to change. They need to act quickly though if they want to solve the problem. Every major sport seems to have a problem. Baseball had their huge problem with steroids, basketball has a reputation of its players being thugs, but football seems to have no major problem. Many of these problems have not only affected the leagues, they have affected the youth all across America. Like the problems the solutions are very diverse. I love all sports, and I would hate to see them become disgraced.
Baseball which is my favorite sport has had the most trouble in the past couple of years. Their decline started with the steroid scandal involving Barry Bonds. When a player that big in the game is going after a cherished home run record and there are scandals surrounding it, there is going to be some turmoil. It wasn’t just Barry Bonds fault and the people involved in the scandal, it was also baseball officials fault for not doing anything when they knew about the things going on in baseball. They turned their back to the problem because at the time baseball was doing well and they didn’t want to disrupt that. Baseball was forced to act because of the scandal. They put in a steroid policy that was laughable compared to the steroid policy of the Olympics. Baseball would like to think that they have cleaned up the game, which they have a little bit, but it is still far from being where it needs to be if it wants a chance to be at the top again. Not only is baseballs problem in the major leagues, it has reached all the way to the high school level. Kids these days are taking steroids of hopes to make it to the big leagues. Some kids believe it is their only chance to get to the pros. They see their hero’s like Barry Bonds and Mark McGuire taking steroids and they believe doing the same will get their performance to where they want it to be. The players already in the league believe taking steroids is the next step to becoming a superstar. It is a never ending cycle of trying to become the next superstar.
Basketball’s problem is with their image. They have a bunch of young players, a lot of them who have come straight out of high school. They haven’t matured enough to know how to act and be a professional. The image problem reached its peak a couple of years ago when a brawl busted out in Detroit. Players went into the stands and started fighting with fans. This was the low point for the NBA. The NBA did the right thing in sorting out who did what in the brawl and giving them significant suspensions and fines. To also help with maturity, the NBA now requires anyone entering the draft must be one year removed high school. One year might not seem like it could make a big difference, but playing for a good college coach with good discipline really does make a difference. When young players have success at such a young age they start to thing the rules don’t apply to them any more. They think they are above the system. They eventually learn they are not above the system and they fall hard. Also to help with their image the NBA requires players who are not playing to wear a suit and tie on the bench. They are not allowed to wear street clothes anymore. For basketball to move forward they need to have better fan appreciation. Without the fans they wouldn’t be making that much money. Hopefully they will realize that soon.
Football is without a doubt the best sport right now. No other sport comes close to competing with the popularity football has in the U.S. The reason football is doing so much better is because they deal with certain issues before they become huge problems. They developed a steroid policy before steroid could become a huge problem. To help with the maturity issue, they require anyone entering the draft must be three years removed from high school. The NFL is leaps and bounds ahead of all the other sports leagues. Also helping the popularity of the NFL is fantasy football. I am a fantasy football freak. The ability to pick the best players and opportunity to create the best team is exhilarating. Also being able to beat friends is a big thrill for fantasy players. Some people say that fantasy football is killing the personal connection with football. People don’t care about teams winning anymore; they just want individual players to do well. I believe they are correct, but I would never be able to give up fantasy football because it is too much fun.
The original purpose for sports was to have fun and be entertained. For professionals this can be very hard to do because of all the pressure put on them to win. Even now though there is a lot of pressure put on kids to get to the next level and win. Crazy coaches and parents are a big reason for it. Some coaches and parents push kids to the breaking point. As an athlete I have been very lucky to have parents and coaches who didn’t push me too hard. They wanted me to try hard and do my best. That is why I believe I love playing and watching sports so much.

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