http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/Suns-will-wear-Los-Suns-unis-to-honor-Phoenix-?urn=nba,238682


ok i have a problem with this...i dont like it when professional teams get political. just stick to what they do best, its like hearing a actor voicing their political beliefs and affiliations. i want to like them, i want to enjoy their movies, but once i find out that they are a idiot outside of the movies, or sports, i then have a hard time watching them anymore.

regardless how you feel about the immigration law, just stick to basketball and try not to offend anyone.

 

-----signature-----

eh, I'd classify this more as the same thing that some bands do at their concerts, but...yeah, I didn't pay all that money to go to a damn political event, just play the damn game.

 

-----signature-----

lol where is Amendial? We need someone to take up the other side and argue the points. I agree with you two about how they should just play the game. Once you get political, you lose fans. Mostly for the wrong reason. You have basketball fans (maybe even loyal ones) who will be pissed and quit watching/buying your team and you will add new ones (latinos in this particular case) who may or may not keep watching.

Seems like a harmless salute to the latino community, but things like this are always manipulated by someone or other to be a major negative event. Most of the time, its just in the team's best interest to not do them. Especially in a climate like there is in Arizona right now - seems to me the owner is just trying to get people to not boycott his team (or cost them next year's all-star game).

 

-----signature-----

i have no problem with them saluting the Latino community, but the timing of this and what is going on in AZ is just plain wrong imo.

and yes, where is Amendial and his loopy POV!

 

-----signature-----

How is wearing a jersey with the words "Los Suns" political? They're simply honoring their Latino fans. There may be a political motivation behind it, but it's not overtly political. If they had a "Vote John McCain out of office" on their jerseys, that would be crossing the line into potentially alienating political preaching. You're welcome to read whatever you want into their decision, but they have every right to their opinion on the matter. If they wore a camo uniform to honor the soldiers, would that mean they're necessarily supporting a war? This is a difficult time for the Latino communities, as they feel targeted by these new laws. The Suns are just being sensitive to that. It's silly to get upset when the gesture is so mild, and motivated out of nothing other than wanting a group of people to feel good.

ETA- I would think the proponents of these laws would have just as much stake in wanting to reassure the legal Latino community that they are appreciated and not being blamed for the problems of illegal immigration.

Why cant they do both? They didn't just make a political statement tonight, they made a statement in this series. The Spurs will not win this series. I can careless about the political statement as long as they take care of business on the court, which they did.


Oh and Ynisfre, they made this a political statement by the press release they sent out when they made the annoucement they were going to wear these jersey's tonight. It clearly stated this was a political statement.

 

-----signature-----

Yes, but that's off the court. Are you suggesting that Steve Nash or the Suns' management team aren't allowed to have political opinions? That's ridiculous. If Pat Riley donates money to the Republican party, that's a political statement too. On the court, in the arena, on TV, they wore pre-exisiting uniforms that said "Los Suns" on Cinco De Mayo. To act as if that "taints" sports with politics is such a reach it might actually touch the Sun. They didn't boycott the game. They didn't call a time out and all hold up signs with some political slogan on it. Off the court they should be free to say whatever the hell they want... whether it's on the Suns' letterhead or not. The uniforms were a symbolic gesture which was voted on by the team, who wanted to wear them, but meant different things to different people. For example, the coach said for him it was merely about celebrating the diversity of the league. Again, it's not overtly political. They're not making any particular political statement on the court.

yes they are...when you come out and share you opinion about the new immigration law and the celebration is timed with your public opinion its a statement...one that i think shouldnt have happened. if you want to celebrate the latino community, then why wait till a bill comes out on immigration?

i would just like them to STFU and play basketball, and leave their opinions to their personal lives, not in the public arena.

its not only basketball, some in MLB are applying pressure not to have the all-star game their due to a political bill. it should be interesting and see if MLB caves in. i hope they dont.

 

-----signature-----

I can agree with both sides. The Suns have a right and to some extent I would say they might even have an obligation to stand up for something that is effecting their fan base. But they should only do that as long as they can back it up on the court. In this case they did so I have no problem with it. Had they lost by 15 to the Spurs last night I would have had a problem with it. Just because they are a sports team doesn't mean they lose the right to get involved with politics, especially considering politics keeps involving themselves in sports. Maybe this what it will take to get politicians to stay out of sports leagues business.

 

-----signature-----

Give me one reason why the Suns forgo their right to make a political opinion public. Because they play sports? Because they're famous? Those aren't reasons, and politics is public. If it offends your sensibilities, then losing a fan is the risk they are taking, and if they sell less tickets or jerseys, that is the price they pay. They go into it with their eyes wide open, and follow their own convictions. How can anybody ask for more than that? Maybe if there was some kind of clause in their contract... but even then I am not sure the organization could or should stop them. And in this case it seems the management is unified with the players on this. So what's the problem? We criticize athletes all the time for being robots, for not answering questions honestly. Then when they are honest, we tell them to shut up.

Again, if they took anything away from the game people pay to see, then I would most likely agree that their method was inappropriate. But the game went off as planned, without a hitch. Frankly it's a little disturbing that so many people think that they should have a say in what a famous person does off the court. Curt Schilling was a conservative blowhard, but that didn't stop me from watching him pitch. Ted Nugent is a crazy dude with some views I find repugnant, but I still enjoy listening to Stranglehold.

Just out of curiosity, did you also feel like the Padres shouldn't wear camo uniforms to support the troops, or the war in Iraq, or whatever they personally felt the unis were symbolic of? The coach of the Suns said for him the uniforms were about celebrating the diversity of the NBA. He punctuated this by saying "that's it." "Los" is the Spanish word for "the". It makes no specific political political statement.