boyboy142 wrote:NBA82 wrote:Anyone think it's kind of weak that LeBron didn't mention Heat fans in his letter?
And you'll only hear crickets from the national media because the popular narrative is that there are no real Heat fans. That the bodies in those seats at AAA don't belong to fans, but mindless drones.
I think there's a racial element to this as well that many people don't want to get into because it threatens their privilege. Places with overwhelmingly white fan bases are always the ones that are considered "real fans" and "hardcore". Meanwhile cities with more diverse fan bases (Miami and Los Angeles) are considered simple, uneducated, fair-weather, etc. The Knicks are only an exception because so many members of the media grew up and still are Knicks fans.
Believe me, if the best player in the NBA left Oklahoma City or Dallas without thanking the fans he'd have hell to pay in the media. But that's the way it is. And before the post-racial crowd comes jumping in to deny reality, I've lived in Miami and Los Angeles. There are many, many seriously hardcore fans in both places that frighten me in their loyalty and ferocity. So no, there is no basis for this stereotype.
A further example, notice how the media fawns over the Oklahoma City crowds and how rabid and loyal they are. The team's been around for less than a decade, and I've dozens and dozens of article praising them. Yet, in Oakland where I live today and where fans have been committed and loyal through waaaay more adversity are rarely given the same kind of positive publicity.
Not totally denying your hypothesis because that could have something to do with it. But I think it has more to do with jealousy than racism. Miami and LA have wealthy, attractive, "who's who" type crowds. Both cities are famed for being glamorous, decadent, and basically awesome.
The crowds that get love are the blue collar crowds in crappy cities, and generally with mediocre teams. Nobody envies some chubby, middle class Detroit fan rooting for Charlie Villanueva, so they get love. But some millionaire with a fake tan and whitened teeth who gets to root for the defending champs at a Heat game and bring his 25-year old model girlfriend to the game? Pretty much the entire country can agree on saying screw that guy, whether or not he's a true fan, whether or not he's a minority, etc. The only way you're knocking that type of fan down a peg is to call him a fake fan. So that's how it goes.