Eddie House was fined $25,000 for making an obscene gesture after making a 3-pointer against the Oklahoma City Thunder with 22 seconds left that eventually won the Heat the game.

What was the “obscene” gesture?

The problem with this fine? Other than the fact that Eddie’s imitation of Sam Cassell’s dance isn’t offensive except to only the most sensitive of people, Kevin Garnett committed a more egregious offense two days earlier and received no punishment except for a foul during the game.

Whether or not the NBA turns around in a couple of days and fines and/or suspends Garnett for his cheap shot isn’t the biggest issue.  The NBA shouldn’t need the media to point out hypocrisy in their decisions. The NBA should know what is and isn’t right to fine.

And let’s not forget, these sorts of display of “unsportsmanlike” conduct are what made the great days of the NBA and sports in general. The glory days of the NBA were when Magic and Bird loathed each other on the court and refused to shake hands; when Michael Jordan and his Bulls went to war against the Detroit Pistons in the playoffs.

These shows of emotion and pride are what fuel rivalries. They’re why we watch sports.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011 at 12:46 am and is filed under NBA.  Tagged Eddie House, Kevin Garnett, Miami Heat, NBA, Oklahoma City Thunder You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.