Bird gone a fowl

As part of ESPN's tribute to the past 25 years in sports (a.k.a. their method of plugging High Def programming), reporter Jim Gray examined the core differences between "Old School" and "New School" athletics. Among the issues were John Stockton's short-shorts, end zone celebrations, throwback jerseys, bling-bling and the number of zeros in a player's contract. But no matter which school you want to associate yourself with, the issue of racial inequality in sports always seems to rear its ugly head.\nIn an interview set to air tonight, Larry Bird commented that basketball was "a black man's game" and that he felt insulted when a white player was assigned to guard him.\nApparently Bird didn't think twice before insulting, among others, every member of the NBA, whether they are black or white.\nLarry Legend's comments came after Gray asked Bird whether today's NBA lacks enough white stars. \nIn his response, Bird added, "I think (having more white stars) is good for a fan base because, as we all know, the majority of the fans are white America. And if you just had a couple of white guys in there, you might get them a little excited. But it is a black man's game, and it will be forever. I mean, the greatest athletes in the world are African-American."\nBut what Bird fails to realize is that regardless of race, basketball fans share the same desire -- to watch good basketball. The number of fans who fill arenas and watch NBA ball on TV spend time watching basketball to see great players playing a great game, not to cheer for one player or another because they can relate racially. The Staples Center seemed awfully packed to me in the first two games of the playoffs.\nDon't tell me the gym would have been even more raucous if Kobe was white.\nAs part of the same interview, rookie sensation Carmello Anthony commented that while rooting for players of the same race may have been the case back in the day, fans of all races now are pulling for guys of different races, ethnicities and nationalities.\n"Race is not an issue," Anthony told ESPN. "Where I'm from, people love the Yao Mings, the Dirks, the Pejas."\nTo most athletes, race doesn't matter. But leave it up to the big mouths of ignorant individuals to spark racial debates that are ridiculous to even consider. No one cares if it is a black or a white player who hits the winning three or scores the winning touchdown. It is exciting all the same.\nOne's racial group has nothing to do with how well someone plays defense, just as it has nothing to do with how well someone drives a car or runs a business. There may be things wrong with the NBA, but the lack of white players certainly isn't one of them.\nScan through the NBA's list of all-time defensive players of the year and white players can be found in each year's selections. Knicks great Dave DeBusschere managed to make the list six times without letting his whiteness get in the way. Even a slow, white kid from French Lick managed to make the list in back-to-back seasons.\nSo what happened when the ball crossed half court and Bird was forced to play some D? Were the likes of James Worthy, Moses Malone and Dr. J. insulted when a "honky" from southern Indiana got in his defensive stance?\nBut according to Larry, white players shouldn't be considered as some of the best defenders or, for that matter, among the best athletes. I guess the NBA would be that much better if white players simply stuck to shooting set shots and underhanded free throws.\nThat's a great message to send to today's basketball youth. You heard it first, straight from an NBA exec's mouth: To all you white ballers out there, go ahead and hang up your high-tops, because unlike Bird, you're all too white to play "the black man's game"