"You Got To Pay To Play!"

"These boyz better start paying us!"

The ole timers would always say, "Ain't nothing in America free!" Well as I get older and wiser I realize that they weren't lying. I can remember when I first graduated from college, moved to Atlanta and into my first apartment to begin my career in Corporate America. Up to that point I'd lived in the dorm for 5 years (I was in no rush bruh) or at the crib before that. So the bills were always paid and I just got up, ate and went class. Life was good, cheap and easy. 

However, when I became a grown man it was like some cat was standing at the end of my bed in the morning charging me to get up. It literally costs $30 just to get out of bed in the morning! Now throw kids in the mix and you could be up to $75 for starters! Regardless of what you do for a living you aren't willing to work for free! So why do people expect for professional basketball players to work all summer for nothing? 

 I'm in complete agreement with both Dwayne Wade and Ray Allen when they said just recently that players should be compensated for playing in the Olympics! Just because these guys make millions of dollars as players doesn't mean that they should become pons in the game and be taken advantage of.

"It's a lot of things you do for the Olympics -- a lot of jerseys you sell," Wade said after the Heat's practice on Wednesday in advance of Thursday's game against Chicago. "We play the whole summer. I do think guys should be compensated. Just like I think college players should be compensated as well. Unfortunately, it's not there. But I think it should be something, you know, there for it." 

 Now Wade was the leading scorer on the 2008 national team that won a gold medal in China. So he's not speaking about something that he's heard. He's watched folks take advantage of him. These guys aren't stupid bruh. Believe me, the most disrespectful thing a person can do to you is to take advantage of you. When your boss/manager/supervisor comes to you at work and asks you to work optional overtime this weekend. What's the first thing you ask him? "Am I getting paid for this?"  Now if he starts running the company line by saying, "No my man, do it for the team! Look at the big picture etc!" You'd immediately say, "no thanks I would do it but I've got a family commitment this weekend!"  

So why do we try to run that same "be patriotic line" to the players just because they're rich. Rich or making good money is all relative. Don't you hate when folks try to size you up when you say, no I can't spend money like that and they come back with the "Man you got it!" response.  Don't be counting my money bruh! That's the same thing Dwayne Wade and Ray Allen are saying. 

How are you going to run the be patriotic line on a boy and you're selling his jersey right in front of him? Be patriotic and give up some of that bread that you're making when you fly them around the world charging people to see them play in what are called "Exhibition Games." C'mon bruh, the modern athlete might be crazy enough to spend all of his money and go broke buying 15 cars, $4 million worth of jewelry, have 10 kids by 6 different women etc. Now granted this isn't all athletes. But if he's gonna go broke he still has to be given the option to go through it all his way. You can't try to think for him and say, well since he's probably going to be broke anyway so we won't pay him upfront. Who does that? He's not trying to let the US Olympic committee pimp him too after he's already been taken advantage of in college! Like I always say, Ima keep it real or all the way 100, which ever comes first! This is grown man business! Patna!

Also for those of you that thought I was being stereotypical about boyz going broke I only deal in the facts bruh.  According to a Sports Illustrated article entitled "How (and why) Athletes go Broke!" published in March of 2009, within 5 years of retirement more than 60% of former NBA players are broke. Within 2 years of retirement 78% of former NFL players have gone bankrupt or are under financial stress because of joblessness or divorce! You need more proof holla at Warren Sapp right now bruh! Now do you still think they should go to work for free?

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