Do you like how strict the NBA is with their athletes?

[Da big3]

i like how stern makes were a dress suit or else theyll come lookin like slobs...

[tkb]

I don't buy the role model thing to be honest, but I think it's good that Stern went with the dress code.

The players do represent the league, and make millions and millions of dollars doing so. It's not too much to ask that they dress up a bit when they are representing the game that made them multi-millionaires. Dress codes are usual for a ton of other jobs than just for NBA stars.

[Patterns]

In the real world, if you smoke pot before a meeting, you're fired.

These guys are lucky that they only get a few suspensions.

I don't pity any players caught with drugs. They should be fined/suspended more IMO.

[Manocad]

Throw the 'role model' thing out the window; that has nothing to do with anything. It's about marketability. The league wants the players to have good public images; it makes them more marketable.

I laugh at the notion that millionaire athletes are getting a tough break from the league. In any professional job these days you take a drug test just to get hired. If you're arrested for something you'll most likely be fired. That's life. Athletes don't have it any worse than anyone else, and quite frankly, they've got it a lot better than everyone else regardless of the pay.

Pay me millions of dollars a year and I'll follow any rules asked of me in order to keep that job. Millionaire athletes that can't stay away from activities defined as no-nos by their employer are just f**king stupid, plain and simple.

[Hood President]

As long as the athelete doesnt do anything illegal or anything that has a chance to harm himself then the rules doesnt come into effect.

so if gilbert arenas decides to be in some xxx music videos with uncle luke then by all means go for it.

but if decides to sky dive off aq plain or smoke weed then you have to inforce the law.

[HarlemHeat37]

everyone in this thread has pretty much covered it..

being a millionaire athlete shouldn't make you above the law and above the rules that we all face in the real world..being a role model is a small exchange compared to the lifestyle that you get by playing your sport..

the NBA should continue to be "strict"..when you have guys like Carmelo Anthony and Kobe in your league, you have to be as careful as possible..

[ToffKobe]

That said just being an athlete shouldn't make you a role model, parents should teach their kids higher standards than that. (note: not to be confused with no athletes are role models, there are plenty but it's because what they do off the court)

Very well said!

[BubbaTee]

The NBA is an employer, imagine if you went to work for some company like GoldmanSachs, dressed like a bum

Google is also a company, and you don't have to dress like you're going to a funeral to work there.

And the whole "project a professional image" message is undermined anyways when you look on the court and everyone's got tattoos and headbands and shorts down to their ankles. These aren't GoldmanSachs wage slaves, no matter how much Stern wants them to be.

Finally, there's potential liability for civil rights violations, especially if the dress code were to interfere with some kind of religious expression. For example, the ban on headgear vs a yarmulke. The NBA could win the case, but it's a situation where it's best for the NBA if nothing happens to begin with.

[Bosanac]

Throw the 'role model' thing out the window; that has nothing to do with anything. It's about marketability. The league wants the players to have good public images; it makes them more marketable.

I laugh at the notion that millionaire athletes are getting a tough break from the league. In any professional job these days you take a drug test just to get hired. If you're arrested for something you'll most likely be fired. That's life. Athletes don't have it any worse than anyone else, and quite frankly, they've got it a lot better than everyone else regardless of the pay.

Pay me millions of dollars a year and I'll follow any rules asked of me in order to keep that job. Millionaire athletes that can't stay away from activities defined as no-nos by their employer are just f**king stupid, plain and simple.

Exactly, at a regular 9 to 5 the penalties are much harsher than the NBA hands out, and the pay isn't as good.

[Patterns]

The NBA is an employer, imagine if you went to work for some company like GoldmanSachs, dressed like a bum

Google is also a company, and you don't have to dress like you're going to a funeral to work there.

And the whole "project a professional image" message is undermined anyways when you look on the court and everyone's got tattoos and headbands and shorts down to their ankles. These aren't GoldmanSachs wage slaves, no matter how much Stern wants them to be.

Finally, there's potential liability for civil rights violations, especially if the dress code were to interfere with some kind of religious expression. For example, the ban on headgear vs a yarmulke. The NBA could win the case, but it's a situation where it's best for the NBA if nothing happens to begin with.

No body dresses like a gangster to work at Google either. You have to understand that the NBA is a business, not a league but a business. The NBA isn't there to babysit grown adults. They're there to make money and they will do anything it takes to make money.

Having a better public image is a way to make money. You can bet if Google handed out a dress code, 99% of the employees would follow. Who would quit a job at Google?

[BubbaTee]

The NBA is an employer, imagine if you went to work for some company like GoldmanSachs, dressed like a bum

Google is also a company, and you don't have to dress like you're going to a funeral to work there.

And the whole "project a professional image" message is undermined anyways when you look on the court and everyone's got tattoos and headbands and shorts down to their ankles. These aren't GoldmanSachs wage slaves, no matter how much Stern wants them to be.

Finally, there's potential liability for civil rights violations, especially if the dress code were to interfere with some kind of religious expression. For example, the ban on headgear vs a yarmulke. The NBA could win the case, but it's a situation where it's best for the NBA if nothing happens to begin with.

No body dresses like a gangster to work at Google either. You have to understand that the NBA is a business, not a league but a business. The NBA isn't there to babysit grown adults. They're there to make money and they will do anything it takes to make money.

Having a better public image is a way to make money. You can bet if Google handed out a dress code, 99% of the employees would follow. Who would quit a job at Google?

You don't have to let people dress like gangsters (although many gangsters also wear nice suits, and the NBA dress code is all about suits) without forcing them to dress like button-down corporate types.

And if the NBA is so concerned about public image, why do they allow tattoos and cornrows and giant shorts on the court? After all, most NBA players are seen on-court a lot more than they are off-court. Lots of employers (especially police depts) ban any tattoos visible while wearing a uniform, yet the NBA lets Luke Walton show off his retardo-arm 82 times a year.

[gswhoops]

If the players don't like the NBA's rules, I'm sure there's a local Micky D's that needs a burger flipper...

[Patterns]

You don't have to let people dress like gangsters (although many gangsters also wear nice suits, and the NBA dress code is all about suits) without forcing them to dress like button-down corporate types.

And if the NBA is so concerned about public image, why do they allow tattoos and cornrows and giant shorts on the court? After all, most NBA players are seen on-court a lot more than they are off-court. Lots of employers (especially police depts) ban any tattoos visible while wearing a uniform, yet the NBA lets Luke Walton show off his retardo-arm 82 times a year.

I don't really understand your first sentence. The NBA isn't telling them to wear suits to every game. They're telling them to dress formal. Try wearing a white t-shirt that goes down to your knees, a bandanna, and huge jeans to work at any office job.

Even Mcdonald has dress codes aka uniforms.

Tattoos you cannot prevent because some players have tattoos before they come into the league. Is anyone going not going to draft a superstar like Lebron because he has tattoos? Of course not. But if the NBA can get rid of every tattoo on its players, will it? Hell yes they would.