NBA commissioner David Stern, who is Jewish, criticized Ward for his remarks but did not punish him, saying, "I do not wish to enhance his sense of martyrdom by penalizing him for giving [his offensive opinions] public voice." Ward spent several days apologizing, claiming his statements were taken out of context and generally trying to make nice with Jewish groups. He was booed lustily at the Knicks' playoff game at Madison Square Garden Sunday night -- though he was also cheered when he helped the Knicks win.

So. Maybe I'm getting calloused. Maybe after John Rocker, nothing surprises me anymore. But I'm finding it hard to get too excited about the fact that Charlie Ward, halfway decent second-string point guard, is an ignorant boob and a religious whacko. I mean, so what? I'm glad Stern decided not to fine or suspend him, because I think people should be able to say what they think. (And yes, I think it was wrong for baseball to sanction Rocker, who is an ignorant boob.) And I'm glad Ward got booed by the hometown fans. And I'm glad he apologized, though I don't believe for a minute that he's sorry for what he said.

If you believe Konigsberg's portrayal of the Knicks, pro ballplayers are a strange, isolated lot, unable to trust anyone because of their riches, unwilling to form bonds with their teammates because of the mercenary, itinerant nature of their business. That last seemed exaggerated to me in the story, but there's some truth to it.

There are many exceptions, but as a group, ballplayers are under- or indifferently educated men who are very rich and very famous at a very young age, and they've been told since they were small that they were special -- which was true; they were special, world-class athletes. It's a recipe for making some strange ducks. And with a media hungry to record their every utterance, it's inevitable that from time to time one of these strange ducks is going to open up his bill and stick a webbed foot in it.

I'd like to put Ward's mind at ease by quoting the religious sage Lenny Bruce, who confessed on behalf of all Jews that, "Yes, we did it. I did it, my family. I found a note in my basement. It said: 'We killed him. signed, Morty.'"

You ask why, Charlie?

"I dunno," Bruce said, "it was one of those parties, got out of hand, you know."

Now go play basketball, Charlie, and try not to say anything stupid for a while.

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