Abolish the handshake line.
That was the suggestion some coaches, fans and sports pundits had after University of Michigan basketball coach and former Miami Heat player Juwan Howard, the reigning National Coach of the Year, slapped a Wisconsin assistant coach in the face as tempers flared during handshakes after a Wolverines loss last Sunday.
It was an ugly scene, as ugly as I’ve seen in college basketball — or any sport — in a long time. The sight of two grown men, Howard and Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard, both respected coaches who make a combined $5.45 million a year, shouting at each other, poking fingers in faces, grabbing shirts and eventually coming to blows, was absolutely revolting.
Taking a cue from their coaches, players from both teams proceeded to throw punches, as well. Who could blame them? Howard and Gard are their mentors. If their mentors thought it was OK to disrespect their peers, why should the college athletes think any different?
Howard, who has since offered a heartfelt apology, was suspended five games — the remainder of the regular season — and fined $40,000. Gard was fined $10,000. A few nights earlier, a skirmish broke out after the North Dakota State vs. Oral Roberts game.
The sideline melees set off a national debate about the tradition of the handshake line. Critics say it is an outdated, insincere formality, and the way to avoid future trouble is to do away with it altogether.
Dick Vitale posted on Twitter: “The time has come to eliminate the line after games of shaking hands. Too many incidents taking places with the action in the Wisconsin vs. Michigan game being SICKENING. Punches thrown behavior was out of control & UGLY!”
Georgetown coach and NBA Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing told Sportsnet 590 The FAN in Toronto: “I don’t like the handshake line. I don’t like it because anything is possible. You’re just getting through a heated battle, a heated game and anything can happen to make things worse, which is what happened in that situation. If it’s my call, I think we should just take away the handshake line.”
I rarely disagree with Dickie V, and have great respect for Ewing, but I could not disagree with them more on this subject.
The solution to avoiding fights during handshake lines is not to abolish them. Quite the opposite. The way to curtail unsportsmanlike behavior is to keep shaking hands and emphasize the importance of mutual respect, of winning and losing with grace, of honoring the integrity of the game, all the things we try to instill in our children when they play youth sports.
We need handshakes now, more than ever, with our country divided and people choosing to interact only with people from their “team”, turning backs on opponents, never extending a hand across the aisle, or listening to another point of view.
Tennis players shake hands, and even hug, at the net after grueling matches. Martial arts athletes bow before and after competitions. Soccer players exchange jerseys. NHL players, after hard-fought often violent battles on the ice, drop their gloves for the handshake line.
NFL and NBA players don’t have formal handshake lines, but they casually greet opponents after games. When they don’t (think Pistons Bad Boys) they get called out. Postgame interaction is an integral part of sports.
I was chatting with my daughter about the handshake line debate. She is a senior in college and played 14 years of soccer. Here’s what she said:
“Tensions run high during a game because you have to be aggressive and almost mad at the opponent to play well, but after the game, it helps to take a step back and go through the handshake line as a reminder that we are all on that field because we love the sport. Some people mutter nasty things during handshakes, but most say, `Good job’ or `Good game’ as a sign of respect. That field or court you battled on can be a space for animosity during the game and solidarity after.”
Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo, known for his fiery personality, was asked Monday about the idea of abolishing the handshake line. The video of his animated response has gone viral.
“That, to me, would be the biggest farce, joke, ridiculous nature of anything I’ve ever heard of,” Izzo said. “We’ve already taught these poor 18-year-olds that when you’re told to go to class and you don’t like it, you can leave. We’ve already told these kids that if you’re not happy, you can do something else. We’ve already told these kids that it’s hard to hold them accountable.
“And now we’re going to tell them to not man up and walk down a line to someone who’s kicked your butt and have enough class to shake their hand. That is utterly ridiculous… Not shaking hands, that’s typical of our country right now.”
If handshakes are eliminated in college basketball, Izzo said his team will not comply.
“That’s not happening here,” Izzo said. “So, if some team doesn’t want to shake hands, you’re going to see 15 of my guys walk down and shake air. We’re going to shake air and I’m going to shake air and then we’re going to leave.”
Well-said, Coach. Couldn’t agree more. Let’s keep handshake lines and get rid of poor sportsmanship.
