There is no doubt that contracts and regulations can be restrictive, and that is essentially the point. Contracts and rules ensure that everyone involved understands what is expected of them. However, these written rules and contracts can be detrimental especially when they include young people.Spencer Haywood, as shown in the documentary, was deceived by his contract with the ABA.
As a young athlete pioneering the elimination of the age regulations rule in basketball, Haywood was drafted to the ABA straight out of high school. At the time his contract was presented to him, he was most likely didn't understand the contract that was presented to him. Whether it be because of his age or his lack of college education, he certainly didn't expect to be blindsided the way he was.
Contracts are dangerous especially when it comes to payment and salaries. Certainly, Spencer Haywood was not expecting to only receive his pay under the condition that the ABA was still an organization and by the time he was 50 years old; and the professional baseball players of the past were focused on playing their sport for a professional team instead of only being allowed to play for one team for a low salary. Ultimately, contracts should be built to reflect the interest of both sides and not to blindside one.
Sports contract can give many students or athletes opportunities that would haven’t normally happened, yet they can also be severely constricting. Without clear guidelines and boundaries contracts can easily take rights away form the player and usually gives them to the coach or team manager. When situations like these happen, it is important to form unions like the Players Association the baseball players formed in order to fight for their rights and advocate for ways their contracts can be bettered . It is through this unity and it’s actions that forces the coach or team manager to listen to the demands.
ReplyDeleteIn the sports examples we saw in class, the owners were clearly taking advantage of their players. Because they knew the players wanted to continue playing, they offered them deals that were unfair and would only benefit themselves. I think that it is important for contracts to be set in place in order to ensure loyalty and reliability between both parties, however I think it's extremely important for these contracts to be fair. If it weren't for the unions forming to take on the reserve clause, sports contracts would still be unfair today. It was important that a union was formed because power is greater in numbers. If there were only a few players rebelling, then it wouldn't be as significant and the game could have continued without them. However, with the majority striking, more attention is brought to the situation especially since owners started to lose revenue and were impacted negatively.
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