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Heat fan files class action lawsuit against Spurs for sending players home prior to game
Just when you thought all the "restgate" drama was behind the San Antonio Spurs comes news today that a Miami Heat fan is suing the Spurs because coach Gregg Popovich elected to send several of the teams players home prior to their November 29 game against the Heat.
Popovich sent Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Danny Green home prior to the game to rest his players early in the season during a grueling road trip that had them playing their fourth game and five days.
For most fans, an apology and public tongue-lashing of the Spurs from David Stern and then a $250,000 fine would have been enough, especially considering it took a late Ray Allen three-pointer for the Heat to get past a mostly reserve Spurs unit.
Darren Rovell of ESPN is reporting that attorney Larry McGuinness has filed a class action lawsuit against the Spurs in Miami-Dade County.
On Monday, Larry McGuinness filed a class action suit in Miami-Dade County, stating that the team's head coach, Gregg Popovich, "intentionally and surrepticiously" sent their best players home without the knowledge of the league, the team and the fans attending the Nov. 29 game against the Heat. McGuinness contends that he, as well as other fans, "suffered economic damages" as a result of paying a premium price for a ticket that shouldn't cost more.
In Rovell's report, he notes that ticket prices are often higher against better teams, which hardly seems like the Spurs fault. McGuinness also compared paying a premium for the Spurs-Heat game to paying for a premium steak and getting a substandard cut instead.
"It was like going to Morton's Steakhouse and paying $63 for porterhouse and they bring out cube steak," said McGuinness, who said he bought his ticket on the resale market. "That's exactly what happened here."
I've bought my share of tickets for sporting events and while I can agree that it can be a letdown to get hyped up over a game with a better opponent and not have their top players playing, I'd argue that Heat fans that paid for the Spurs game got to see a good game and got their money's worth regardless if some of the Spurs' most popular players were in Miami or an a Southwest Airlines flight home.
It's not up to me to decide whether or not what Popovich did violates state deceptive and fair trade practices law, but if the Spurs had beat the Heat on November 29, I wonder if there would be a lawsuit at all.
That cube steak is looking awfully good next to the pile of 80/20 ground beef that would have signified the Heat losing to a Spurs team lead by reserves.
i live in miami and as a fan, he is absolutely right.
You think it is a frivilous suit when you don't live in miami and are not a heat fan.
A) we have an increase of chinese tourists because of the heat. We have a chinese ads and partnership with tsingtao, with that being said, you can see tourists from China that come to watch a game. Imagine that.
B) i bought the tickets 24hrs before the game, and checked every single news outlet and there was no mention of players "NOT TRAVELING"
then i have to pay a premium (more than a DC ticket), pay $20 bucks to park, $8/soda, $11/beer, like $9 pizza.
This doesn't include taking half day PTO to pick up my kid and take him to the game early and watch shootaround and take pictures down below in lower bowl.
I am not a lawyer nor do i make the income of a lawyer and have to pick and choose a handful of games I can go to at a fair price and watch a spectacular game. To spend commit to spending $190 to give your child an experience and bonding over common interests is worth it, i just cant do it more than 4 games/season.
I would expect the nba to at least notify me or communicate if the product was not up to par with expectations, like any other injury list.
Secondly, spurs were fined because they did a "disservice to fans", so i have every right to the 250K fine as a fan who paid to see that game, but curious to see where teh 250K goes and if it is towards the NBA bottom line.
No I did not enoy the game. Who wants to see a team shoot 30+ 3PA? The ony venue that is more expensive than an avg. heat ticket is the knicks, keep that in mind. So if you pay $200 for a Lakers ticket, and Kobe doesn't play, regardless if it was a good game, does that justify the premium you paid? If he was injurned, not a big deal, because it is still the best product they could have produced on the court, in this case, this was a clear violation of rules and decieved David Stern. As a fan, why do i suffer for Pop sending a statement back to Stern for setting the schedule.
On top of that, if my memory is correct, I believe the Pop continued to use all players in that OT game, when he could have staggered the minutes differently.
There are many other ways to rest your players, whic include what 99% of coaches do.... limiting minutes, vs not traveling with a team.
It is clear that Heat were dissapointed in not playing against elite competetion and it was evident in their body langauge.
I wanted to see Chris Bosh at 5 against Duncan, a HALL OF FAMER PLAYER.
Although the ticket said Heat vs Spurs, they are required to notify the NBA when players are injured or AT LEAST DO NOT TRAVEL prior to the game. This is clearly evident in the NBA rules and was part of the fined violation.
Regardless if I enjoy the game or not, i am a Heat fan, i watch and enjoy all games. In reality if Pop just notified the NBA that players were not traveling, i simply would have not purchased the tickets and aave my money for another game (pacers,clips, OKC too expensive).
I have no problem with what he did, but ultimately there are better ways to achieve the same results while maintaing a high calibur basketball team. To not travel with the team, I don't agree with, but ultimately why it isn't a frivilous suit is because of his failure to contact teh NBA that the player was not traveling.
If he contacted the NBA, i would have seen it and purchased tickets. Instead the media was littered with articles of who has the best euro step wade/manu the day of the game, in false hopes and i guess expectations.
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This guy should be glad he went to a damn basketball game, a lot of people out there are less fortunate to actually go see a NBA basketball game.
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This burns my fanny (to put it politely). I wish the Spurs could have pulled that win out and shut those stupid Heat fans up. I can't wait till we play them again at full strength as I'm sure our guys might be just a little bit fired up, to say the very least.
