ESPN's Version of Williams' Part In Sloan's Resignation

I've read enough stories to have a pretty good sense of what happened between Sloan and the Jazz. He clashed a lot with Williams, they had a rocky relationship, and it got to the point where it was no longer worth it for him. You could say that the whole ordeal was Williams' fault, sort of. But what you can't say is that Williams forced Sloan out by going to the management. That is, unless you're ESPN. If you're ESPN you can conjecture about that in multiple stories, none of which site a source in Utah (though they may find sources who say things like, "99% of the players were happy," while an indictment of Williams, it doesn't follow from that source that Williams went to management and said, "Him or me"). Yet nevertheless, columnist after columnist has taken to the website and the idiot box to offer this conjecture. Last night they printed some e-mails from Jazz fans that threaten Williams with being booed and the like. Why this total disregard for the truth (or at the very best, wild, damaging speculation)? Because it makes good copy. As I think they discovered with the LBJ situation, uppity sports star doesn't know his place, is a headline everybody can get behind (did he push Spoelstra, did he wait outside of Spoelstra's house with a knife? we have no reason to think so, but what if he did?). Pretty ridiculous and disgusting. Pretty stupid, too. There's a reason sport has a reputation as, how shall I put this, less than brilliant. Can you imagine this sort of thing in the New York Times? Did Obama help plan the crackdown on Egyptian protesters? A source close to the White House said, "The administration is upset about what's happening in Egypt," so we have proof. Sloan leaving is a sad event made pathetic by this bullshit. "Reporting" pure conjecture is not really reporting. Gleefully choosing the most dramatic story for its drama is not news work, its gossip. I thought sports writers got into the game because of their love of athleticism, doubtless that's true for many. But some just couldn't get jobs at the National Enquirer.