Manhattan Strip Clubs: David Stern’s double standard shows in Gilbert Arenas case
After a dispute with teammate Javaris Crittenton over a gambling debt in December, Arenas lay an unloaded gun on a chair at the next practice. It was reported by the New York Post the players pointed guns at each other, which both parties disputed. Arenas said the incident was a practical joke without harmful intent.
“People assume they are thugs in basketball sneakers,” said Todd Boyd, a professor at USC and author of “Young, Black, Rich and Famous: The Rise of the NBA, the Hip Hop Invasion, and the Transformation of American Culture.”
“A stereotypical story was written, which wasn’t true. But it perpetuated the beliefs that NBA players are wealthy thugs.”
It seems Stern has set a precedent with the suspension.
But consider the past transgressions in which Stern has had to make tough decisions:
• Stephen Jackson, who has a criminal past, was suspended seven games after firinga gun outside a strip club in 2007.