The Day Gary Bettman Hands The Stanley Cup To The Owner First Is The Day That Hockey Dies
Congrats to the Denver Nuggets on winning their first NBA Championship in franchise history. Truth be told, I don't really give a hoot about basketball outside of the Sixers, so Denver winning the Finals means nothing to me. But there's something that stood out while watching the Larry O'Brien Trophy ceremony that made me sick to my core. It's not something that is new, and it's not something that only happens in the NBA. But the fact that Stan Kroenke was the first guy to get his hands on that trophy makes me want to puke.
Now listen. I get it. The man has paid a fuck ton of money to get his hands on that trophy. And I'm fully aware of how much it takes financially to build a championship caliber organization. In order to build a championship roster, you need to hire and pay the best scouts out there to find the best players to draft. In order to build a championship roster, you need to build a great reputation around the league with great care and facilities for the players in order to attract free agents. In order to build a championship roster, you need to hire a great GM who is able to pull off some great trades and negotiate some great deals. All of that shit costs money, and all of that comes out of Stan Kroenke's wallet.
But what would happen if you put Stan Kroenke on the floor during an NBA game? He'd get his shit completely wrecked. He'd get owned every which way to Sunday. You can have all the money in the world, but it's still the guys on the floor who are winning a championship. You think the NHL would ever hand off the greatest trophy in sports to some dude who probably can't even skate but just has a fat bank account? Think again, bub. That shit is always going to the captain of the winning team.
But that's what makes the Stanley Cup the greatest trophy in team sports. Because it's all about the team, the team, the team. Every single player on the roster gets a chance to take a lap around the ice with the trophy they've dreamed their entire lives about lifting over their head, and then it goes to coaches and owners and managerial personnel.
Here's the full Stanley Cup ceremony from last year. It's 13 minutes long. Landeskog first lifts up the Cup around 5 minutes in. 8 minutes later, ESPN goes to commercial break and Stan Kroenke still didn't get a piece of the Cup yet.
That's the way it ought to be. Unless big Stan throws himself in the lineup and scores 2 goals, adds a couple of assists, kills a few penalties and gets a few pucks deep, he can wait his turn. Thanks for the money though.