Perhaps we should reconstruct the chicken wire fences that surrounded the basketball courts of old and bring the term \cager"" out of retirement.
The brawl that occurred during the final moments of the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers matchup Nov. 19 certainly brought new meaning to the word.
The general consensus is the security at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Mich., the night Ron Artest took a Solo cup full of suds to the head, whereupon he entered the stands to pummel the offender, was lax at best and that more attention (and money) should be given toward its reinforcement. But consider this: Security is something like car insurance-you never know how credible it's going to be until there is an incident. Car insurance doesn't keep us from getting into car accidents; our own vigilance (and the vigilance of other drivers) does. The fans at the Palace of Auburn Hills Nov. 19 were negligent. Granted, that doesn't mean that Artest had the right to hypothetically hop out of his Hummer and beat them with a tire iron.
Though precautionary measures are taken to ensure the safety of the fans at basketball games, problems can occur beyond the control of the beefiest of security guards, the most sensitive of metal detectors and the most hi-tech of cameras. And most often, these situations are initiated by the fans themselves. Really, what could have security done to prevent the melee from happening? Nothing.
Now the league wants to ban selling beer at concession stands after halftime. That's not going to fly, but the cups still will. They don't need to be filled with beer for a fan to deem them proper riot weapons.
The NBA wouldn't consider going through with it anyway; there is simply too much money to be made by keeping the fans supplied with alcohol. Just think of how many burly security guards or overpaid, tantrum-prone forwards that money could buy.
Beside, none of the other proposed solutions to prevent future NBA affrays are as practical or efficient.
And although this appears to be a potentially effective solution, it wouldn't accomplish much. After all, tailgating before sporting events has become as common as playing the national anthem before tip-off.
Nothing prevents fans from coming into an arena already drunk and belligerent. Unless we're prepared to issue breathalyzer tests at the door, turning away potentially dangerous spectators who blow over the legal limit, there is no point in putting a halftime cap on beer sales.
The problems of the NBA game mayhem are not security-related, nor do they occur due to the volatile effects of alcohol alone. They stem from the fact that, at times, faithful fans become overzealous in their team loyalty and from the tendency players have toward forgetting to leave their egos in the locker room.
Spectators need to remember that that's just what they are-spectators. They are owed nothing more for the price of their ticket than perhaps a triple-overtime, buzzer-beater ending. Players need to keep their heads in the game and their hands to themselves. They certainly aren't owed anything more than their obscene salaries and the chance they have each season to get their money-grubbing hands on the Larry O'Brien championship trophy.
The NBA should take the $5 million they've fined Ron Artest and invest in some chicken wire. Artest can get started on that fence during his 73-game hiatus. If he works quickly, he may be able to have the fence up in time for the Christmas Day rematch between the Detroit Pistons and his Indiana Cagers.
