Long Shot

"It's a pretty, I think, widely accepted statistic that if you carry a gun, your chances of being shot by one increase dramatically." That is the kind of statement that usually starts a lengthy debate involving the Second Amendment (A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed). David Stern is certainly not the first American to assert this, but he is most certainly the first Commissioner of the National Basketball Association to do so.
The NBA's collective bargaining agreement allows players to own licensed guns, but they can't carry them on any league or team business. Man to man defense should be effective enough for most instances involving threats like a three-point shot or your average fast break. Why all the fuss right now? Indiana's Stephen Jackson shot a gun in the air at least five times outside an Indianapolis strip club on October sixth. He originally told police he fired in self-defense during a fight in which he was hit by a car. The question that enters my mind abruptly is this: What did the air do to him? Why wasn't he at least shooting at the car? Maybe he's just a really bad shot.
A few years back, Smith and Wesson, the world's largest handgun manufacturer, began marketing a line of golf clubs - as well as a mountain bike "just like the cops on the beat ride." All of this cross-promotion just brings one event to mind: The Biathlon. That would be the winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. Perhaps instead of limiting the use of firearms at sporting arenas, the Commissioner could encourage more. A few creative rule changes that would allow shots to be blocked by blowing them out of the air, or a strategy that involves laying down a spray of suppressing fire as the ball is being pushed up the court. Let's take our best shot and make the NBA the sport of the new millennium!