Former UCLA men’s basketball player Reeves Nelson filed a lawsuit against Sports Illustrated Wednesday,
adding another layer to a story that has painted amateur sports in a bad light.
The $10-million defamation suit comes in response to a
George Dohrmann article that provided numerous alleged instances that contributed
to the perceived derailment of the historic program. At the center of
Dohrmann’s piece is Nelson, who is portrayed as a malcontent with a tendency to
bully his own teammates. While Nelson acknowledges some past transgressions,
his lawsuit is rooted in the sworn declarations of 18 of his former Bruin
teammates that the accounts are inaccurate.
Whether or not the stories prove to be true, the
win-at-all-costs mentality instilled in athletes at an early age is almost
definitely at work here. UCLA had recently made trips to three consecutive
Final Fours and expectations were high.
When things did not go as planned, the culture previously implemented by
head coach Ben Howland was challenged and these celebrities (particularly
Nelson) were exposed for what they truly were—young adults who, for the most
part, were unprepared for the rigors of that status.
Ultimately this problem comes down to the media’s treatment
of sports figures at younger and younger ages. It is widely accepted that athletes
are placed under a magnifying glass and their every move is overanalyzed. With
commercialization in full effect on the collegiate level, the media is
constantly looking to expose these money-makers with no regard for the fact
that they are young adults.
Dohrmann’s alleged failure to gather accounts from those
directly involved exhibits irresponsibility. This is made worse by the fact
that the worst of the claims can be seen on college campuses everyday and none
of which were NCAA violations. This story leaves a worse taste in my mouth
about the state of sports journalism than that of the UCLA men’s basketball
program.
Andrew Sinatra
KIN 577
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