From the beginning--all the way back to the Olympics in 1276 B.C. Greece--sports had been solely about athletic ability, whether it be strength, speed, or agility. However, in the last hundred years, the study of what goes on in the minds of athletes has become more intriguing and useful, and therefore more widely studied.
Basketball is a widely renowned sport that is infamous for generating news inside and outside of the athletic contests themselves. A few times this past year, we have seen a wide circulation of news stories on certain basketball players getting into trouble off the court and learning life lessons. Two examples are Ja Morant and Britney Griner, who have both found themselves detained due to their impaired decision-making.
The first basketball star to come out with personal issues was Metta Sandiford-Artest, formerly known as Ron Artest, before he first changed his name to Metta World Peace. He changed his name with six years left of his 18 year career to become an advocate for mental health in the sport.
Since then, many basketball stars have felt comfortable enough to come out and seek help for their mental health issues. Big names like Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant come to mind, while others go less noticed like Demar DeRozan and Draymond Green. The fact that it took til the 2010s (Metta World Peace) for basketball stars to feel secure enough to reveal their mental health is reflective of the atmosphere of intense manhood infecting the NBA and other sports associations.
Now, in the modern day, behind the scenes of the actions of athletes, is a world of the health of the brains that people we avidly watch possess. Ja Morant is a prime example of this as he had signed a contract with his team as well as endorsements that totaled ~$350 million--becoming the face of the NBA underclass. Then, three times in the past four months he was caught with a firearm by witnesses and on video.
The repercussions for this were heavy as Morant lost $40 million dollars of contracts as well as a suspension from all team activities for a minimum of two weeks. Now, a few days after his most recent gun charge, he is awaiting another suspension and has realized that there is another option: getting counseling for his own mental health.
Due to the growing popularity of focusing on a healthy mind and a healthy body, as well as the inclusive environment the NBA has grown into, bigger names are willing to come out and admit they need help. Instead of sparking up toxic manly smoke in the mirror, people that aren’t athletes should learn from those that are and become more inquisitive and accepting of mental health issues.
2 comments:
I think its great that its a more welcoming environment for athletes to be able to come out and talk about mental health struggles. Being a professional athlete is so stressful on both the mind and body and can take a big toll on personal health, especially with media and pressure from fans. A lot of people can be hateful towards players if their team doesn’t win or just be hateful in general. I think that is generally good that mental health is beginning to be addressed.
Increasing support for mental health in professional sports, especially basketball, is a productive trend that should be continuously researched and supported. Professional athletes deal with extreme pressure on a daily basis, and sometimes the negative attention and comments made about their abilities or character can harm their mental health and confidence. Because their profession is so public, every mistake they make can be held against them, which negatively impacts their performance and health off the court. I think that more attention should be drawn to athletes in need of extra support, and we should work to change the stigma around mental health and professional sports in the future. It is an essential aspect of social media and the extreme publicity surrounding professional sports and should be addressed in a way that is socially acceptable and understanding of everyone's issues. I believe that the work being done by professionals in this field is important and needs to further explored for the betterment of sports and its fans.
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