Let 'Em Play

2010 NBA Finals

For NBA enthusiasts abroad, its a great time to be a fan of the game. Not only does this year's finals pairing include great players, it also boasts a the most memorable rivalry in NBA history. The two franchises have combined for 32 NBA championships, Boston with 17 and Los Angeles with 15. For all the grandeur and flashing lights involved with this fierce rivalry, this year's finals demonstrates to those with any sort of basketball I.Q. an emergence of sensitivity seldom seen in years previous.

I'm not going to outright say these hard workin athletes are sensitive by any means...

 as they spend hours practicing for the game "they put their life on the line for..."

...but the climate has changed. There was a time where you didnt come through the lane. You just didn't. I mean, you could, but there would be severe consequences. Like, "not coming back in the game consequences." Bruisers like Charles Oakley, Dale Davis and Anthony Mason, who all had better than average careers were often sent into games to send a message. These were the years I grew up. I wasn't around during the '80's to see the epic matchups of Bird and Magic (Cam'ron: Oh my God, its tragic) but from all accounts there was still a toughness, non-existent in today's game. Ticky-tack fouls befuddle me. The majority of current NBA players grew up watching Michael Jordan, he never (ever, ever, ever) would flop or let an opponent know they had the ability toput him on the ground, without a strong effort. It's toughness, mentally and physically that enabled Jordan to have wins locked up before the game tipped-off.

Players crying' lack of calls? C'mon son. This is the NBA, the greatest basketball league in the world, yet your on television crying about not getting your way after flopping to the ground. Referees are now dictating games, as the first game of the Finals concluded with the Celtics amassing more than 25 fouls. You have to as Denzel Washington so eloquently put it in Remember the Titans, "Let the boys play ref, let the boys play." Sure, fouls are a necessary part of the game, but it should never make or break the game. Ray Allen with five fouls? C'mon son.

Things, will and always do change...