What follows is the script that aired on "Sports at Large," on WYPR, 88.1 FM in Baltimore. The program airs each Monday at 5:30 p.m. during "All Things Considered," and again during "Maryland Morning" Tuesday at 9 a.m. You can listen to the program through streaming audio at www.wypr.org.
Over the past 30 years or so, since the advent of Title 9, women athletes have become more than just competitors to their young fans, boys and girls. They've become flat out heroes, to be idolized and emulated.
So, what happens when one of these idols stumbles and falls? To what degree does her image take a beating in the public square, and just as importantly, should she be permitted the same latitude as a male counterpart.
Three weeks ago, Diana Taurasi, a guard with the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, scored 22 points in a 93-81 home win over the Seattle Storm. After the game, Taurasi and friends went out to celebrate.
Phoenix police said Taurasi's vehicle was driving 20 miles an hour over the 35-mile-per-hour limit, and that an officer saw the car drift out of a traffic lane.
When Taurasi was stopped at 2:30 a.m., she was driven to a mobile DUI van, where she gave a blood sample. Her blood-alcohol level was a point-17, more than twice the Arizona limit of point-08.
She has pleaded not guilty to the DUI and speeding charges, and Taurasi faces a minimum of 30 days in jail and a maximum of six months if she's convicted. She is to face a hearing on Wednesday.
Even to those who are indifferent or hostile to women's basketball, the name Diana Taurasi is a known commodity.
She led the University of Connecticut to three NCAA championships, and has been a key cog on two Olympic gold medal winning squads.
Men who hate women's basketball have been known to confer on Taurasi the status that she plays like a guy, based on her athleticism and brashness.
And by the way, men, that's no compliment.
Diana Taurasi was a driving force of the Mercury's league championship squad two years ago and currently leads the WNBA in scoring.
She's so good that a former competitor once named one of her adopted twins in her honor. The child is a boy and she named it Taurasi.
At any rate, the WNBA's All-Star Game takes place this Saturday in Connecticut, and Taurasi would normally be expected to be a part of the festivities back in the place where she became a star.
But should she be? Can a league that so depends on the goodwill of its fan base have one of its leading stars on display under these circumstances?
Save for a one-game suspension for mouthing off to officials, Diana Taurasi has never been in trouble before. Under normal circumstances, that might get earn her a pass.
But Diana Taurasi could have killed one of the little girls who idolize her with her thoughtlessness, and she deserves some punishment.
The Mercury, with the WNBA's blessing, gave Taurasi a two game suspension. That's a decent first step, but Diana Taurasi should take the next one by sitting herself down and taking herself out of Saturday's contest.
After all, All-Stars and heroes, males and females, don't just exist on the playing field. Their best and most lasting work comes when the jersey is taken off. It's a lesson Diana Taurasi won't soon forget.
ADDENDUM: Since this script was written and recorded, Diana Taurasi was selected to the Western Conference All-Star squad yesterday.
3 comments:
Interesting thing: Taurasi is the first WNBA player suspended for DUI before final court resolution of the charges. (Braxton, arrested in September 2006, wasn't disciplined by the league until she entered a guilty plea in August 2007.)
And this, by the way, couldn't happen in baseball, in which the union is too powerful to permit a suspension before a guilty plea or other conviction.
Yeah, Rob, it doesn't look as if our host puts much stock in the idea of due process.
I'm curious whether you, Milton, would accept a fine and suspension from your employer, plus withdraw yourself from consideration from honoraria if you were charged with DUI or a similar traffic infraction.
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