Comment on [Highlight] Charles Barkley asks Adam Silver about the domestic violence issues within the NBA
R00bot@lemmy.blahaj.zone 8 months ago
Get em Chuck. Adam Silver clearly wasn’t expecting that question but his answer was pretty good (after some initial stumbling from being caught off guard).
JohnnyEnzyme@lemm.ee 8 months ago
I want to be fair, but as a lawyer and head of a popular, beyond-wealthy sports org, Silver looked an awful lot like an unprepared deer mouse trapped in the headlights.
China, domestic abuse, general league issues, superstars having outsize influence over franchises, franchises holding cities hostages (i.e. vacating threats), etc… I feel like these are some of the easy issues and easy answers someone like Silver should be able to smooth-tongue his way through, yet we had the above.
I’m sorry, but his response was pretty weak, and kinda fucked up IMO.
R00bot@lemmy.blahaj.zone 8 months ago
Fucked up because he wasn’t ready for the question or because the content of his response was bad? I thought the content was fine but the delivery was poor.
JohnnyEnzyme@lemm.ee 8 months ago
I mostly agree with you, but his whole demeanor and style of response said to me: I don’t want to be here answering this question, and in fact I want it to go away as swiftly as possible.
Yes of course, I realise you can’t have everything in life, and the guy’s not a trained actor or sports journalist, but I would have liked to see the guy go with more of a: ‘Good question, Charles. It’s a serious issue, and we’re as concerned as you are about this kind of thing. Here’s what we’re doing about it, and we welcome you working with our staff to improve the process’ kind of response.
The guy’s a very rich man paid to oversee one of the most profitable sports leagues in the world. Let him drill a few flashcards and stand in front of a mirror a couple minutes per day practicing his knowledge and response to current league issues of the day. For heaven’s sake…
Maybe David Stern was naturally smoother and glibber about this stuff, and that’s okay, but that’s what practice is for.