Breann Lujan-Halcon
blujanha@uwyo.edu
For the first time since the offseason free agent scandal, the Los Angeles Clippers and the Dallas Mavericks faced off in Dallas Wednesday night. From the moment Clippers forward DeAndre Jordan stepped off the bench for introductions, he was met with waves off boo’s from bitter Mavs fans.
There wasn’t a ball movement that went without a sound of disapproval until Jordan was benched in the final minutes of the fourth quarter in the Clippers’ loss 118-108.
ESPN announcer Jeff Van Gundy wasn’t having it. During the broadcast of the Clippers-Mavs game, Van Gundy gave Dallas a piece of his mind, arguing that a man is in his right to change his mind.
“I would also like Dallas fans to acknowledge the sheer lunacy and absurdity that they’re booing DeAndre Jordan tonight, and they’ll be cheering someone like Greg Hardy on Sunday. That, to me, is absurd,” Van Gundy argued during the ESPN game. “All this guy did was change his mind.”
While I think backing out on a seemingly settled verbal contract is as shady as the next guy, Van Gundy has a point.
We live in a society that values a man’s word over the well-being of women.
Dallas Cowboys defensive end Greg Hardy, convicted of domestic violence in 2014 before the ruling was overturned and expunged from his record, is still welcomed with open arms in the eyes of NFL fans.
Why don’t stadiums of football goers boo Hardy when he steps onto the field? Leaked photos by Deadspin picture Hardy’s ex-girlfriend bruised and battered draws one to think that Hardy is sacking more than a few quarterbacks.
Apparently lump sums of money and a four game suspension are all it takes to be forgiven in the good ‘ol USA. You can drag women by their hair, you can punch them in an elevator, but don’t back out on Mark Cuban and the Dallas Mavs. Tom Brady was nearly hung in town square over cheating, DeAndre Jordan is publicly shamed in his place of work, but the so-called “men” that beat their spouses? The NFL shakes their finger, they ride the bench for a few days and are right back to the superstar treatment.
So go ahead and boo the man exercising his free agency, but by all means, you got to love them Cowboys. Overturned domestic abusers and all. Welcome to America.
