O'Neal said he wonders why the predominantly black NBA is judged more harshly than other sports. Why, he asked, did a fight between players and fans lead to a conversation about the state of the league and the temperament of its players?
When a Major League Baseball player threw a chair at a heckling fan or an NHL player was sent to prison for plotting to kill his agent, O'Neal said the reaction was more subdued and the criticism was limited to the individuals.
O'Neal, 26, said he doesn't understand why there is talk about an age limit for NBA rookies when athletes in baseball, hockey and golf, among other sports, routinely turn professional as teenagers with no public fuss. He wonders why critics say high school players are hurting the league when some of them are among the best and most popular players. "I don't know what it is, but as a black athlete that came out of high school, I feel like it is because we are black," O'Neal said.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/sfl-joneal16jan16,0,4091978.story?coll=sfla-sports-headlines
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