Difficult to find sports role models

By Brian Betz

What you see is what you get. Or at least I thought.

It must not be because for the first 18 or so years of my life (give or take) I was blind to what a role model really was.

Of all the athletes that kids admire, it's unfortunate to believe that the images they portray aren't really what you'd find behind closed doors.

They only allow you to see what they want you to see, just consider Kobe Bryant.

This was especially troublesome after watching Jayson Williams' tearful interview on ABC's 20/20 last weekend. The ex-New Jersey Nets star is being charged with manslaughter stemming from a Feb. 14, 2002 incident where Williams allegedly shot and killed chauffeur Costas Christofi in the bedroom of his home. Williams' defense claims it was an accident.

A former all-star, Williams played nine seasons in the NBA before a severe broken leg injury ended his career in 1999.

A recent gag order prohibits Williams from being able to give television interviews. The judge ruled that such interviews could sway the jury, thus taking away from the effectiveness either the prosecution or defense could have on the jury.

The gag order was wise. I didn't know what to think after Williams' interview, and frankly, I don't want to have to see another one.

It's generally assumed that high-profile athletes can get off of charges just because of who they are. And I understand that networks can get ratings by airing such interviews, but when only one side of the story is revealed, it becomes unfair to the legal process.

Guilty or innocent, Sporting News' "Good Guy" of 1999, someone who spent time assisting communities in need through the Jayson Williams Foundation, is now an alleged murderer. And yet, there's no doubt kids looked up to this man as inspiration.

Williams, and other public figures such as Kobe Bryant, give a black eye to the true "good guys" of professional sports.

But Charles Barkley warned in the early 1990s that parents shouldn't let their kids idolize people like him.

If I could turn back time, I know I would've listened a little closer.

Ya see?

û Contact Brian Betz at (408) 554-4852 or at bbetz@scu.edu.