Across the pond

Author: Adam Clayton

Throughout the course of human history, politicians and philosophers have often defined social and political interaction in terms of struggle.

For sports, the value of struggle in the appeal and importance of a game cannot be underestimated. Particularly in the modern era, the promotion of competition and the singular importance of winning have been elevated at the expense of honesty, sportsmanship and the quality of the game.

In football, instances of the sacrifice between appeal and efficiency reflect wider differences that exist across cultures. Spanish football is often deemed the most beautiful, and South American players considered the main proponents of "the beautiful game." In contrast, the passions of the English game are often seen in the intensity and "winning mentality" of the players on the pitch. That isn't to say Spanish football suffers from a lack of passion or determination - it just manifests itself in a different way.

Fans of Madrid and Barcelona, rather, demand competitive success from their team, but that isn't enough - they also have to awe the fans. Certain English teams, however, are content to play the most efficient game they can - one reason of several that I despise Liverpool (they're really boring to watch).

However, most recently I thought of this because of one of the most controversial tactics in basketball today - the hack-a-Shaq technique. For those unaware of the strategy, it involves opposing teams intentionally fouling Shaq whenever Phoenix (not necessarily Shaq) has the ball, and using players they don't care about to do it. Shaq, the most dominant player until a couple years ago, has set records in basketball for the number of hugs received over the course of a game, which can draw a foul while not making the big man knock you to the floor. The motivation for this lies in the fact that Shaq cannot shoot free throws, and thus, letting him take them is safer than allowing the rest of the team to take shots in open play.

This is one of the most ridiculous and shameful instances of modern day competition. Not only does it have debatable advantageous, it can barely be called basketball - and makes everyone not invested in the result immediately switch channels. Sports is not exclusively about competing and getting the win, the whole point is that it provides entertainment in the process. Even the most intense rivalries of football have produced some of the most memorable displays of brilliance in sporting history (think Maradona's second goal against England). By removing any chance for the opposing team to do something remarkable, one also devalues the win. In essence, it's like settling for half - getting the victory but denying yourself that which makes a victory truly great. Some excuse this behavior by saying Shaq is a professional and should learn to shoot free throws (fair enough), but this isn't about Shaq, this is about the game!

I don't know too much about basketball intricacies, but I offer up a solution to this passion-sucking problem pertaining to basketball. Football has a system of play-on, in which a foul can be waived away if it favors the affected team and retribution dealt with later. Basketball could very feasibly have this all encompassing rule (it already does when the player is in the process of shooting). Fouling players off the ball could be ignored at the referee's discretion, and at the end of possession the player still hit with the foul. This would ensure both the flow of the game and prevent a tactic which has so far tarnished one of the most interesting series in recent history.