A couple hours ago I flipped to the Iowa State-Oklahoma State basketball game just in time to see Tyrus McGee get called for a taunting technical for pumping his fist and screaming after drawing an 'and-one.' In the Auburn game just hours later both Kenny Gabriel and Chris Denson were given technicals for hanging on the rim "excessively." To me they both looked like pretty innocent slam dunks and as if the player was simply regaining his balance before dropping 10 feet. Earlier in the season Markel Brown of Oklahoma State received technicals for celebrating in a way deemed to be "taunting" behavior and was ejected after making two of the best plays of the college season. That neutral zone between normal and excessive got a lot smaller a couple weeks ago when the NCAA issued a memorandum to its officials citing a need to crack down on this sort of thing to prevent tensions building and exploding like in the Cincinnati-Xavier brawl earlier in the season. The NCAA and the Officials Coordinator John Adams are trying to cover their backsides after the nasty, widely televised fight and the sport is suffering. I watched that game and that brawl, and there were no over-the-top celebrations or increased trash talking after dunks. What there was was 40 minutes of intense play with above average physicality and competitiveness in a rivalry game that was not well-handled by the refs. In other words, the celebrations and the taunting after dunks weren't the problem, it was the general attitude of the players, especially on the losing end and with the defenders who lashed out after failing to make a play. Somehow the higher-ups missed that and the players are now suffering for having fun playing a sport and doing it with some passion. Honestly, it's shameful. Let the kids play the game.
This got me thinking about taunting and the nature of celebration in sports. To give you my honest opinion up front, I love celebrations in sports and I'm one of those people who think that so long as it doesn't delay the game or harm or personally attack anyone, why not? If a guy wants to hang on the rim for 10 minutes let him. His team will be a man down at the other end and when they get scored on and come back up the court he'll be called for basket interference. People, specifically administrators, seem to think that athletes can't understand sportsmanship for themselves. I've never heard a player complain after the game that he felt taunted, and I guarantee you what bothered him more than the thunderous dunk was the excessive elbowing. He probably regrets being posterized, but if he hates the dunking player or attacks him later in the game, that's a lack of mental toughness on his part. Get over it.
Anyway, as I was writing this, my thoughts wandered to ultimate, and the ever-controversial subject of spiking the disc. As someone who has never spiked once, I am still a huge fan of it. Unless an opponent is throwing it at me or tearing up the disc, go wild. I think it's funny and entertaining to anyone watching, and it gets the team fired up. That's my short story; below is my longer diatribe, wherein I try to explain why I believe that spiking has to become an understood and respected part of the sport. Like any other aspect of ultimate or a celebration in any other sport it must be done with respect for the opponent and without expressed malice. Referees don't regulate self-officiated ultimate, the athletes do, and that puts a responsibility on the shoulders of the players in a fashion unlike any other sport. It is up to them to understand the rules and the reasons that they are in place.
Regardless of the intent, it's the perception that matters in sports. In ultimate it doesn't matter whether you were trying to foul the player or not: if he feels like you did he is going to call it. In basketball it matters whether the ref thinks you fouled someone, and regardless of your intent you may indeed have acted inappropriately. So there are rules to define what this inappropriate behavior is, and in ultimate spiking is in a grey zone. 'Legally' according to the rulebook it isn't banned, but many players feel like it is ruining the game and spikes can certainly create problems on and off the field. I think that spiking doesn't have a place in the "game" but it is most definitely a part of the "sport." Sports: competitive. Games: not. Ultimate can be both. I will not try to answer or explain the question of where ultimate is heading and whether becoming more sanctioned and competitive is good for it or not. Brief opinion: I personally fully approve, and I believe that silly teams, silly tournaments, and great (and maybe drunk) people will always be in demand in ultimate frisbee. So back to the perception of spiking. It is unquestionably the most controversial facet of the sport among ultimate players. Ari Weitzman wrote a Skyd article on this subject that produced a wealth of interesting dialogue, and I recommend reading it. This is my take on spiking, and I welcome criticism.
The big question comes down to is spiking spirited? The answer is absolutely yes; if done correctly. Is it a violation of the "Spirit of the Game?" Well I can tell you the spirit of ultimate is changing, just as the rules and expectations of sportsmanship have been tweaked in pretty much any other sport or athletic event over the years. Sportsmanship is hard to define but attempts typically include the phrases 'graciousness in winning or losing' and 'respect for an opponent.' Weitzman says that spiking is a sign of respect, and while he may believe this, I believe that in the moment most players spike the feeling inside them is not an overwhelming amount of respect for the guy they just skied. That respect is felt and comes across most sincerely through one's hard play and after the game as they think about how fun, talented and/or spirited the opponent was, perhaps capped by going over to give a handshake or have a brief conversation about how well an opponent played. If he played by the rules, didn't make bad calls, and maybe even went out of his way to say something nice afterwards it would make no difference to me how much an opposing player spiked, so long as he was appropriate about it.
I think one common defense of spiking, other than it being fun, is that it is an emotional, instantaneous celebration, not a thought-out decision. There are times where players spike in the heat of the moment and may or may not regret it later. I've seen teammates apologize to the other team almost immediately after spiking to prevent any bad feelings. However, anyone who has ever seen a serious game knows that this is by no means always the case. Plenty of times the scoring player will turn around and or/yell something before spiking, or even engage in a prearranged or group spike (see Freechild's grenade-type spike with NexGen).
In ultimate as opposed to basketball, the reaction time after a big play is much more drawn out. In basketball you dunk and start yelling even before your feet touch back down on the ground, then you have to run back to play defense. In ultimate once you score play is halted for minutes and you have time to run around and think more about your actions. The NCAA's recent crackdown is targeted at defining taunting as opposed to a "normal" celebration. Players of any sport are going to celebrate, and what makes that celebration acceptable is the class of it. When I say class, I don't mean maturity but rather the style or act of celebration. So whether it's a quick elbow spike or launch out of bounds, "excessive" will forever be an ambiguous term by nature and it is much easier to instead hammer out what taunting is and how it is unacceptable.
I said earlier that perception is crucial in sports and I believe this primarily applies to better understanding or managing the way the other guy handles the situation, not just the one spiking it or the guy shouting after the dunk. Profanity or any personal attacks or offensive gestures are clearly inappropriate (which I'll get to later) and if you can't understand that you probably shouldn't be around people, much less playing a sport. Weitzman's article also says that whenever an opponent spikes the disk, even at him, he feels that it is not really directed at him, but more of a celebration of the opponent's achievement. I find that hard to believe. You're kidding yourself if you think people spike only because they are pleased with themselves. In ultimate, like any other sport, your success relies on you besting an opponent: that's ultimately what you are celebrating. You have done something great, and perhaps more importantly you have done it in spite of your opponents' efforts. No one spikes during a game of toss, now matter how great the catch is; you spike because you caught it over a crowd of defenders. The implication of dominance or besting an opponent is unfortunately inherent to the act.
When a celebration crosses into the unacceptable is when it becomes a personal, inappropriate, or hurtful act. A "f**k you!" or throwing the disc at an opponent: wrong. Saying "let's f**king go!" or spiking the disc: perfectly fine. It is the type of spike or the utterance that comes with it that makes all the difference. Players have to come to understand that the spike or celebration may come and is allowed, and if it doesn't affect another person or the game, you must let it go. You should be more worried about giving up that break or when you got beat deep, not this kid's celebration that has nothing to do with you. Now, if he/she spikes the disk on the edge there is a problem unless the owner of the disk has consented to their disk potentially being ruined. And that is not something that is automatically consented to when someone volunteers a game disk without the teams discussing it before the game, everyone should understand that. The spike on the edge should be decried by everyone on either team because it delays the game and no one likes playing with a taco-ed disc.
The question of personal attacks, or "taunting" seems to have an obvious answer: simply inappropriate and unquestionably illegal. The TMF has come to ultimate with the addition of observers and I fully approve of the ability to punish players for celebrating in a way that denigrates another player, team, or anything affiliated with them. This is my definition of taunting. Making eye contact with an opponent and nodding, maybe jawing a little saying something like "let's go" or "I'm great" is fine. Saying "you can't stop me," "suck it," or other foul language in a derogatory context or clearly directed at another person are not OK.
Like it or not spiking has become part of ultimate and part of its spirit and it is here to stay. Along with self-officiated ultimate players finding a way to maintain acceptable spiking (ie no taco-ing) under fear of penalty, I believe that the responsibility weighs heavy on the defender to understand that spiking is a part of the game and not get upset. Any mentally tough athlete knows you shouldn't get mad at another player if he beat you deep, you should focus on yourself, and spiking should be the same way. Both the offensive and defensive player must eventually accept that spiking is part of ultimate and equate those codes of conduct with their knowledge about any other rules.
Getting back to basketball and thinking about Markel Brown get ejected, I can't help but feel that the young man got cheated. Yes, he stared at the guy he dunked over and he roared, but did he taunt him? Absolutely not. If he said anything directly to the player like "you suck" then there would be a problem. But a little jawing and a prolonged stare? Even if the defender felt taunted, he should understand that competition is what he signed up for and shouldn't feel any need to retaliate or escalate. The NCAA cited a need to crack down on this stuff to prevent tensions building and exploding like in the Cincinnati-Xavier brawl earlier in the season. What they have done is clamp down on players' ability to play with passion, discouraging highlight reel plays and any outburst, regardless of whether it is offensive or not. Don't get me wrong, a player can go overboard, but the new insistence on closely regulating the issue is infuriating to players and coaches and is eroding the heart of the game. That type of competitive intensity is what makes good players great and what exhilarates audiences and teammates as they observe their player's success. Don't punish an athlete for being excited and don't try to regulate passion out of sports.
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