The idea of protectionism, when applied to a sport like baseball or basketball, is ridiculous. Say the NBA suddenly decided to limit the number of foreign players that could be drafted to four players in the upcoming draft. In the name of "protecting" American players at home. Arguments are made by American players - "they're taking our jobs," "American talent isn't as developed as foreign talent so we need quotas," or my favorite, "Foreign players are better than we are and they will play for less money than we will." This idea is ridiculous - when Dirk Nowitzki, Yao Ming, or Steve Nash play games, the quality of play is better and tickets are cheaper. More fans (I think) would be willing to go see a better quality game, too.

Liked what you read? I am available for hire.