This evening, at 9:11 p.m., baseball games around the nation will pause to observe a moment of silence and a video presentation.
Last Sunday, NFL coaches paced the sidelines, screamed at officials and sent plays in to the quarterback, but they did so with an American flag patch and the numbers "9-11" embroidered on their shirts.
Last year, following the terrorist attacks, Americans turned toward these two sports, be it for strength, inspiration, or simply a diversion. Though both football and baseball canceled games, both regrouped within a week, trumpeting patriotism for the rest of their seasons. Whether it was "God Bless America" echoing throughout stadiums during the seventh-inning stretch, the Seattle Mariners kneeling around an American flag after clinching their division's title, or the New York Jets wearing the local fire department's hats on the sidelines, Major League Baseball and the NFL did their parts in helping America regroup. This year, as America commemorates the anniversary of the attacks, these two sports are once again filling this role.
And then, there's basketball.
On Sept. 4, a collection of American hoopsters walked out onto the court at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, wearing jerseys that proclaimed them to be representatives of the USA. The 5-0 American team was set to take on Argentina in its last match of the second round in the FIBA World Championships. Two hours later, the Americans were looking at a scoreboard that proclaimed Argentina the victors. In the three days that followed, the United States would complement a 10-point victory over Puerto Rico with losses to both Yugoslavia and Spain, good enough for a sixth-place finish in a tournament that the U.S. was not just supposed to win but dominate.
Against Argentina, the United States shot less that 38 percent from the field and brought the national team's 58-game winning streak crashing down.
Against Yugoslavia, the U.S. blew a 10-point fourth-quarter lead and eliminated itself from medal contention.
Then, against Spain, the Americans failed to score in the game's final 2:38 en route to a 81-75 loss. At stake in this game wasn't the preservation of a winning streak, nor was it a shot at the gold medal. Four days before the nation observed the first anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, 12 American basketball players disgraced their country on an international stage.
Such a sentiment does not arise simply from the fact that the Americans were upset three times in their own country by teams that they should have beaten by 20 points or more. Nor can it be truly appreciated by the fact the Paul Pierce, the team's leading scorer, saw not an iota of action in the game's fourth quarter.
The dozen players who made mockeries of the USA jerseys that they were undeservingly wearing did so because, in the words of USA head coach George Karl, their competitive nature had been adversely affected by "the money and greed of the NBA."
Surprise. The NBA is a world where 18-year-olds are given millions to sit on benches and stars bicker over whether they deserve 14 or 15 million dollars per year. But the World Championships was--or should have been--a far cry from the NBA. These guys weren't playing simply for titles or accolades. Given the chance to represent America only days before the anniversary of Sept. 11, the United States team was--or should have been--playing for those three letters that were emblazoned on their chests: USA.
Instead, they bickered with each other and played uninspired basketball. Placed on a world stage at a time when Americans were turning--just as they did one year ago--to the sporting world for patriotic displays, the U.S. players left millions wondering how they could play with so little regard for their national pride.
Now, as every American looks back at the 365 days that have transpired since the worst terrorist attack in the nation's history, our baseball and football teams will once again represent the world of sports, while the nation's basketball team sits in silence, having squandered the golden opportunity of being able to boost patriotic sentiment through a triumphant--or at least proud--performance at the World Championships.
Of all those who have commented on the U.S. basketball team's struggles, perhaps no one was more insightful than NBA commissioner David Stern, who noted that a reassessment of the team's preparation is needed before the next international tournament. His comments, however, were perhaps more applicable for the players' own introspection into their priorities as citizens of the United States than for the state of USA Basketball as a whole.
"As an American, we've got some work to do," Stern said.
Evan Davis is a Trinity senior and senior associate sports editor. His column appears Wednesday.
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