United States?

"Hold up dawg! Really, that's how y'all gone act?"

The Italian physicist, mathematician and astronomer, Galileo Galiliei, gave it to us like this, “All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered, the point is to discover them. The famous publisher, Michael Levy, had boyz thinking when he said, “You can bend it and twist it… You can misuse and abuse it. But even God cannot change the Truth.” Oscar Wilde, the Irish poet and playwright, was spitting that fire when he said, “Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.”

Well homeboy, where I’m from you don’t need a mask to keep it real. Boyz in Indy are killing me always screaming that the national media doesn’t give the Indiana Pacers any respect but the local fans won’t even come to the games. I gotta speak on it because it’s driving me crazy playa.

How in the world do you have one of the best teams in the league and boyz won’t come to the games? Last year the Pacers were the 2^nd best team in the East and were ranked 29^th out of 30 teams. This year they’re 3^rd  in the East and they’re ranked 26^th! It's a shame when the Trailblazers and Warriors are 4 and 5th respectively and the state that claims basketball as it's state bird, diet and wardrobe is swimming at the bottom with the catfish in attendence.  

Let me put something on ya head pimpn'! The state of Texas is "THE FOOTBALL STATE!" So if the Dallas Cowboys were one of the best teams in the NFL and had the worst attendance in the league there would be something drastically wrong with that picture, right? Stop me when I start lyin' bruh! 

The Chicago Bulls lead the league in attendance every year. Why? Because they put a good product on the floor and most importantly they have loyal fans "now." Their attendance is directly related to the team being worth watching combined with the fact that a boy will go HAM on you for speaking against their beloved Bulls.Trust me bruh, I know!

When I was a kid growing up in Gary just a half hour from Bulls Stadium you could walk up and get a ticket to the game and probably get some playing time with the right pair of sneakers on because the Bulls were horrible. That’s when they had duns like Artis Gilmore, Dave Corzine and Reggie Theus. The joint would be empty because they were losing. However, ever since Jordan arrived and changed the culture you can’t get a seat in the United Center without droppin’ it like it’s hot.

 So if winning is the answer to empty buildings tell me why duns won’t come to see the Pacers play especially if this is supposed to be basketball country? All you hear from the good folks around here is that the Pacers are a bunch of thugs or that after the Ron Artest fight at the Palace I was done with that team etc. Then you hear, “Oh the Jamaal Tinsley situation turned me off. I won’t support thugs.”

Let’s keep it real or all the way 100, whichever comes 1^st! How much of that is the truth and how much of that is code bruh! Jamaal Tinsley hasn't played for the Pacers since the 2007-08 season. Larry Bird suspended that clown from practices and games during the entire 2008-09 season to work on what he called a trade. I ain't mad at him for it either. Tinsley was an idiot that wanted to be a gangsta instead of a professional athlete. Ron Artest left the freaking team in 2006 homeboy! So you’re gonna look me in the eye and tell me that you won’t support one of the best teams in the league because of some duns that ain’t even on the team? Wheredeydodatat?

If this is the basketball mecca like boyz claim it to be then what keeps them from coming to the games? Don’t say that they aren’t good enough because even during the 1999-2000 season when Reggie Miller and Co. went to the Finals they were only ranked 11^th in attendance. However, the Hoosiers winning or losing will have boyz waiting in the cold for hours for tickets.  

When the joint IS sold out it's when they’re playing the Heat, Clippers, OKC and the Lake Show. The crazy thing about those nights is that if you close your eyes you’d think that the Pacers were the road team. It’ll be just as many boyz with Lakers jerseys on tonight as Pacers joints.

It’s a shame that in 2013 I’ve had friends tell me that the reason some of their family members 40 and older won’t support the Pacers is because there aren’t enough white players on the team. See young folks don't trip on race as much because the world is much different to them than it was when I was coming up. Our kids are growing up together and they all dress the same, talk the same talk, listen to the same music etc. 

However, they aren't the ones with the income to purchase season tickets just yet! It's the older cats that are still stuck in their foolish ways that force a great team to play in front of a half sold arena every night!

I can hear the cat in the background making excuses saying, "People around here just like college basketball better. That's why they support the Hoosiers win or lose." Is it that or is it the fact that IU always makes sure to have 7 to 8 white players on the roster every year to satisfy the fan base? Because if you loved basketball the way you say you do. It wouldn't matter what color was on the floor.

What else do you want me to say? It’s time to wake up people! It’s called the United States of America for a reason playa! If you want respect from the national media you gotta show some respect to your own team regardless of the color of their skin! 

Holla At Ya Boy!
Jay Graves
Get @ me on Twitter: @jaygravesreport