I sent the following comments along to one of the talk show hosts. There has been a general assumption that youth sport and pro sports, what I refer to as Revenue Sports, are two peas in the same pod. There is no longer much truth in this belief. What is done in Revenue Sports today is so far removed from youth sport that it is like trying to find similarities between apples and bricks. Our youth coaches and players see the TV coaches and players every day.
Parents see fans on TV too.
Of course, the worst behavior is always highlighted. We all tend to imitate what we see unless we have alternative models. Sprewell's problems were brought on by his own admitted lack of self control. Losing control seems to be on the increase in Revenue Sports today. As I wrote in the feature article in the December 1996 issue of Sport Scene, there many types and levels of sport.