By james art There are only a few times that Gilbert Arenas makes sense with his basketball actions, but his latest involving Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzula’s desire to make fistfights legal is being bought by many fans.
Mazzula recently made headlines when he expressed his desire for players to fight on the court for fun, similar to what is done in the National Hockey League. He made the statement after being asked by NBC Boston what rule change he would like to see in the league.
Arenas was not amused. The three-time All-Star thinks the battle has many loopholes.
The first thing he mentioned was about the imbalance when it comes to power. He believed that some players were simply physically stronger than others.
He specifically asked:
“Is there anyone on his team who thinks that if Isaiah Stewart is allowed to punch one of them in the face, does he think that one of them won’t break their face or their jaw?”
“Which of his players thinks he’s going to have a chance against someone like him [Isaiah Stewart]someone like Draymond Green if they actually threw a shot and connected?” he continued.
Stewart plays for the Detroit Pistons, and since he’s young, he’s already known for fights, including getting suspended for punching Drew Eubanks.
Arenas also talked about the possibility of players missing games for getting hit, just like the infamous incident with Rudy Tomjanovic, who was hit in the face, almost died, and his season ended. He only managed to play three seasons after that.
This makes sense because unlike in hockey, NBA players do not have defensive teams.
Joe Mazzulla’s willingness to fight could threaten the superstars
Another great point made by Arenas is the danger of fights that will result in star players who he believes what he would do, if ever, be the target of bruises.
“I will only attack the star player. I don’t care about the rest of your team,” he said on the show.
“I’ll try to get Luca out [Doncic]Kyrie [Irving]. I want the people who can impact the game.”
“Imagine if Shaq was allowed to hit someone,” he asked sarcastically.
Instead, Arenas amusingly suggested that maybe the coaches should be allowed to battle, pitting the 6’2 Mazzulla against the giant Darvin Ham.
Right now, it seems impossible for Mazzulla’s proposal to happen.
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