NBA All-Stars’ World Tour A Terrible Idea
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By DERON SNYDER
It’s dubbed the “World All-Star Classic,” a proposed series of six games over two weeks played on four continents. The expected headliners are Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade and Amar’e Stoudemire, among the NBA’s best players and biggest stars. They’re the guys who get the max contracts and TV commercials, the sneaker lines and endorsement deals.
They’re also the guys who apparently couldn’t care less about rank-and-file players, the bulk of the league’s workforce.
These all-stars are sending several messages, each worse than the other. It’s a far cry from the USO’s “Hoop for Troops” tour, designed to entertain troops and their families. It also lacks the quaintness of the star-studded exhibitions across the nation.
No, this all-star tour looks like a selfish, self-centered money grab by the league’s elite, oblivious to the tour’s effect on their fellow players, labor negotiations and the general public.
