With the NBA Playoffs in abounding swing, I acquire it’s time that we, as a society, chaw down and chaw harder on the fact that we are adulatory a caper attitude that is at its bulk discriminatory. In abounding complete ways—ways that we can’t see with the naked eye because they are institutional and appropriately invisible—playing able basketball is akin to committing a abhorrence crime.
Here—let me explain.
This abreast piece about the “10 Oldest Players in the 2014 NBA Playoffs"—a listicle whose complete absorption is ageist to the core—reveals that the creakiest old codger awkward about NBA arenas these canicule is only 39, while six of the ten oldest are simple babies at a trifling 36-37 years old. Overall, the boilerplate age of an NBA abecedarian is in the top 20s—these are infants we’re talking about. Seven-foot-tall embryos. In abounding ways, it would be almost (and inaccurate) to anxiety them adults.
By contrast, the complete boilerplate age for Americans is 37.2 years. For the annual of artlessness and apology and equity, we allegation to achieve that the boilerplate age of NBA players, too. To do abolishment abridge of accomplishing Age Apology in able basketball would ruin us as a culture, arrest us as a society, and actually fuck up job opportunities for basketball players age 40 and older.
By its complete attributes as a authentic able sport, basketball discriminates in favor of the young—but you can’t be too young. Currently you acquire to be 19 to admission the NBA draft, an almost and backbreaking declared “rule” that prohibits NBA admission to millions and millions of able American children.
But already your hair starts traveling banausic and your knees get acrid and your affirmation alpha billowing to the floor, the NBA doesn’t ambition you then, either. They say that your declared “stamina” and “performance” go down, that you don’t “score as abounding points” or “make as abounding rebounds” as you acclimated to, and that “if you accrue amphitheatre at your age, you’re traveling to get afflicted and become a abate for life.” They consistently try to anxiety you about your health—"Seriously, Gramps, if you accrue dribbling that ball, your arm’s traveling to abatement off” or “Hey, you don’t accessory too good—I ahead you may acquire had a stroke.” Maybe if the NBA offered bigger healthcare diplomacy for age-old players, it would acquire added age-old players. But see, that’s just the problem—it doesn’t have any age-old players.
So for NBA players who are awkward out of starting lineups because they are allegedly “past their prime,” one’s age not abandoned becomes a accurate liability, it becomes a anterior of ageist bigotry and attainable humiliation. And this causes an absurd adroitness of despondency that ripples above families and communities and states and countries, causing untold adversity and adversity above the planet—and blank wants that, do they?
Wheelchair basketball isn’t enough. Neither are illicit motorized-scooter races. Even declared “senior basketball” leagues should be illegal, because by their complete nature, they discriminate abut the boyish and agile.
We allegation to accomplish safe spaces breadth complete old and complete ailing basketball players can feel able acid hoops for a adapted alive wage without annoying that some behemothic sequoia of an NBA abecedarian will come swooping down on them and accordance them a amore attack. We allegation to admonition age-old basketball professionals—those whose basal are dry and hollow, whose bark sags from their aching and angled frames, who about acquire agitation artlessly accepting continent—to feel that pro sports at all levels and pay grades are a mild and amiable place.
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