Trash talk is part of the game, right? Kevin Garnett has one of the biggest mouths in the league and he's celebrated as one of the league's golden boys. But while the league looks the other day when KG harasses an opponent all the way up the floor, it draws a hard line when players start interacting with fans.
Allen Iverson was reminded of this lesson on Tuesday when the league handed down a $25,000 fine for comments directed at a fan near the end of the third quarter in Saturday's win in Charlotte. It's unclear what exactly AI said -- the incident went unreported in the media until the fine was announced -- but I'm guessing it likely included some profanity.
Personally, I think it's refreshing to see the NBA crack down. I know for a fact that fans in Charlotte never, ever use profanity in their own conversations, and it's absolutely unheard in this day and age for fans at any sporting event to taunt or instigate a shouting match with a rival player.
Iverson is making nearly $22 million this year, so truth be told, he might not even notice $25K missing from his paycheck. But still, it's important for the league to at least make a symbolic statement: salty language is 10 times more egregious than skipping practice. Yes sir, the NBA has its priorities straight.
