/
THE BATTALION Pag* 11
TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 1979
Ivor
Clams of sports’
urting themselves
By MILTON RICHMAN
UPI Sports Editor
is is a free country, far less restrictive than it ever has been in all
its 203 years, and the easiest way you can prove that is by listening to
the [colossal liberties some people take with the statements they
make
Nowhere is there any better example of free speech than in sports.
Even when it wasn’t considered as fashionable as it is today, athletes
generally said whatever they felt like. They just weren’t quoted as
much.
I Individuals like Muhammad Ali, Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson
and Dock Ellis, to name only a few, love to talk and tell everyone
what they think. One of the best ways they have of doing that is by
talking to reporters.
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EN YOU HAVE THOSE at the other extreme. Fellows like
Larry Bird, Indiana State’s spectacular All-America, Thurman Mun
son of the Yankees and fteorge Hendrick of the Cardinals. They are
the plams of the sports world, the ones who don’t wish to speak to
reporters at all.
If people like Bird, Munson or Hendrick do not wish to talk to
reporters, that’s certainly their prerogative. I’ve spoken with Munson
and Hendrick and found them communicative when they wish to be.
On [Other occasions, they made it plain they had no intention of
king with anyone.
at’s their privilege, their right, but I can assure them they are
wrong in their basic attitude. They’re certainly not helping them
selves. They’re really not helping anyone.
George Hendrick, the Cardinals’ outfielder, is perceptive enough
totalize what he’s doing isn’t right and to his credit, at least he
admits it.
lRLIER IN THE YEAR in St. Louis, Hendrick was asked
whether he had been any influence on Garry Templeton, the Cardi
nals 22-year-old shortstop who decided that he, too, didn’t care to
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talk to reporters last year. Hendrick said he hadn’t influenced Temp
leton at all.
I “I told him he had everything to lose and nothing to gain,” said the
Cfpinals’ outfielder. Explaining why he chose not to talk to writers,
H|ndrick added:
“I don’t know who I can trust and who I can’t trust and I don’t want
tojgpend the time and energy to distinguish between the two.”
Mphy, I can’t help wondering, doesn’t George Hendrick simply try
trfeing everyone? That’s part of the Golden Rule. Burned once by
^■writer it seems, Hendrick now tars everyone with the same
wusli He’d be the first to point out the injustice of it all if reporters
RYA\I smpluyed the same reasoning he does to treat him the way he does
-J them. I wonder if he has ever given any thought to the fact that
writers are directly responsible for what have to be the most satisfy
ing experiences in any ballplayer’s life. That generally comes when a
player is voted MVP and into the Hall of Fame. And who are the ones
who do the voting? George Hendrick should think about that some
time.
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JOHN CLAIBORNE, THE CARDINALS’ new general manager,
disappointed me, too, when he said “I’m not going to tell a player to
talk to the press or not to talk to the press. His relationship with you
(the press) is his business.”
John Claiborne is dead wrong there.
His job is to sell the Cardinals to the community as well as baseball
in general to the fans. One of the ways he’s obliged to do that is by
selling George Hendrick the idea publicity generates interest in the
team, interest in turn generates attendance and attendance is what
helps pay Hendrick’s and Claiborne’s salaries.
Several things come to my mind anytime I see athletes refusing to
kofei™ 1 talk to the media.
I CAN’T HELP BUT THINK how vital they’re always saying it is
to communicate and here they are doing exactly the opposite of what
they say. I also think about how some of these strong silent types go
offby themselves in a corner, then return years later, maybe for some
Old Timers’ function, and look around longingly for someone to talk
ttfiLefty Grove was only one of many I saw do that.
Most of all, I remember the late Frank Graham’s classic line in
connection with Bob Meusel, who seldom ever gave newspapermen
the time of day during most of his career with the Yankees. Near the
end, he mellowed somewhat, and Graham, noticing the change in
him, wrote: “Now that it’s nearly time to say goodbye, Bob Meusel
is learning how to say hello.”
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The future of the NBA
O’Brien likes what he sees
United Press International
DALLAS — Larry O’Brien, the
grandfatherly man who oversees the
highest paid group of athletes in the
United States, spent a distinguished
political career learning the signs
and what they mean.
And he likes the signs he sees.
“A few things stick out in my
mind over the past few years,” said
the commissioner of the National
Basketball Association.
“I remember the day after Port
land won the championship in 1976.
All the traffic was stopped and there
was a huge parade and the commu
nity was so excited about what its
team had done.
“And I remember after last year’s
championship series I got a call from
the White House and was told that
the President wanted to see the
Washington Bullets and could they
come to the East Room for a visit.
“And before the seventh game of
the Seattle-Washington series last
year I was with the owners of the
Seattle club and the tension was so
thick.
“I’ve been in some national elec
tions (as head of the Democratic
party). I have sat there waiting for
the returns to come in to find out if
four years of efforts would pay off.
Well the tension you could feel in
the arena in Seattle was comproable
to that.”
In other words, says O’Brien, if
the sport of professional basketball
can create such tension and can
create such enthusiasm among the
fans, then things can’t be all bad.
“I’ll be long gone and we will all
be long gone,” he said, “and the
NBA will still be going strong.
O’Brien was in Dallas last week to
look over the 18,000-seat arena that
will be completed in about a year. It
was the first of his planned visits to
possible expansion sites and Dallas
is almost certain to be one of the two
cities that will receive a franchise for
the 1980-81 season.
Expansion of the NBA from 22 to
24 teams was agreed upon earlier
this year and the decision came at a
time that struck some as odd.
Three of the NBA s showcase
markets — New York, Chicago and
Boston — are experiencing a down
year. Attendance in Madison
Square Garden, Chicago Stadium
and Boston Garden is down and
television ratings have slumped this
year as well.
But if all of that is a problem, says
O’Brien, why are people clamoring
to acquire an NBA franchise?
“The people wanting franchises
don’t talk to me of any reservations
SWC Baseball Standings
Texas
. ..8-1
.889
Arkansas
. . 12-3
.800
Texas A&M
. ..5-3
.625
Baylor
. ..8-5
.616
Texas Tech
. . .6-6
.500
Houston
. . .6-7
.462
TCU
. . .3-7
.300
Rice
. .3-12
.200
SMU >
. . ..2-9
.1-8
Last Week’s Results
FRIDAY: Arkansas 3,
SMU 1;
Texas
12, Rice 3.
SATURDAY: Arkansas 3, SMU 1;
Arkansas 9, SMU 2; Houston 5,
TCU 1; TCU 13, Houston 11; Texas
7, Rice 0; Texas 16, Rice 0.
SUNDAY: Houston 3, TCU 0;
Baylor 7, A&M 3; Baylor 5, A&M 3.
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they have,” he said. “And they are
certainly free to do so.
“I read these stories about our at
tendance being down and I don’t
understand them. We do have a
unique situation where teams in
three of our major markets have a
won-loss record that is saddening to
them this year. The attendance for
those three teams is down consid
erably.
“But attendance in almost half our
cities is up. And with two weeks to
go in the regular season our atten
dance was down less than 1 per cent
from last year — which was a record
year.”
A common suggestion when a
major league expands is that the ex
pansion will dilute the talent in the
league. O Brien scoffs at such a
suggestion.
"‘We have 242 basketball players
in our league,” O’Brien said, “and
sometimes I stop and think, gosh,
that’s it. That’s all. Just 242.’
“This year alone there were 3,000
kids playing basketball in the Divi
sion 1 level of the NCAA and we
have only 242 in the NBA. I think
you and I could sit down and look at
a list of all the basketball players
who are not in our league and we
could come up with a pretty good
team.
“And when we expand we will be
adding only 22 players. That’s not
many when you think of all the tal
ent out there. And the coaches feel
that the next few years will produce
some of the best talent that has ever
come into the league.”
Along with Dallas, the cities of
Minneapolis-St. Paul, St. Louis,
Cincinnati, Miami, Pittsburgh and
Toronto are being consider as possi
ble expansion sites. A decision on
the two choices will probably be
made at the league meeting in June.
“It is ridiculous for any sports
league to expand for the sake of ex
pansion,” said O’Brien. “It creates
adverse public reaction for the ex
pansion teams and it creates adverse
reaction for the league as a whole.
“But we feel the time is right for
the broadening of the base of the
NBA. This will probably be our last
expansion for the forseeable future.
Our next goal is internatinal play
within the next six to ten years.
“The time is past when someone
can just show up and be awarded a
franchise. We want to award these
franchises carefully. We want to get
a feel for the community interest.
After all, when a team goes into a
city it is part of the community and
it owes that community something.
“It’s odd when you think about it,
but all the cities we are considering
have had basketball — either NBA
or ABA. Even Toronto had a brief
taste of the NBA years ago. The
point I’m making is that there is not
one city we are thinking about
where professional basketball has
not failed in the past.
“But that doesn’t set me back be
cause in no instance where a franch
ise folded was the basketball com
parable to the NBA as it is today.”
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