The Washington Generals, Gracious Losers or Dirty Cheaters?

In 2007 Kurt Schneider, former executive vice president of marketing for WWE, became the CEO of the Harlem Globetrotters.

Copyright © by Penn State. Used under Creative Commons.

Kurt made some radical changes. Ones that, like them or not, have helped the Washington Generals/Harlem Globetrotters games resurgence.

His biggest move, and the one he may well be most remembered in the franchises legacy, was bring back the Washington Generals.

In 1995 the controversial decision was made by then Globetrotters owner Mannie Jackson to have Klotz "retire" the Washington Generals and re-brand them the New York Nationals. To long time fans of both teams, this marked the end of an era.

The Washington Generals had been the Globetrotters opponents since 1953 and become an icon in their own right.

Despite some fans crying foul, Jackson stood his ground and for a while it looked like the Green and Gold was gone forever. But in 2007, Schneider took over and righted what many saw as a huge wrong by asking Klotz and company to bring back the Washington Generals.

It seemed that once more all was right with the world. But it turned out that while the Generals were indeed back, something had changed about them.

As noted above, Schneider was once part of the WWE and despite his clear love for the "purity" of the Washington Generals feud with the Globetrotters, some of his previous employers influence was clearly there.

Klotz had long aspired the Generals legacy would be that of good sports. But since returning the Generals were now less than honorable at times.

It begins when the Generals first come out on the court and their coach, be it Reggie Harrison or Sam Worthen, immediately insult the home town of where they are playing. It's a classic ploy by wrestling bad guys to "generate heat" and it works just as well with the Globetrotters.

The other noticeable thing is that the Washington Generals have developed a habit of cheating. Since coming back the Generals have attempted tricks such as having their coach hypnotize the Globetrotters, utilizing a remote control ball, putting a clear plastic cover over the hoop, and most recently getting in bed with the referee to put the Trotters in the penalty box.

Copyright © by Dunur Blum. Used under creative commons.

All of these efforts ultimately proven futile. Despite these creative attempts to turn their luck around, Harrison and Worthen have thus far failed to capture the elusive win.

So is this new direction with the Washington Generals a good idea? Ultimately time will be the judge.

The reason that has been given for this change in the Washington Generals personality, is that it is used to create suspense in a sport where there is none.

In some ways that is a fair argument. While the Generals fan in me still holds out hope that the Washington Generals will shock the world at least once more within my lifetime, the reality is that fans in attendance know who is going to win. And that it won't be the team in Green and Gold.

There is also the argument that having the Generals not "play fair" helps keeps them in their unique position as the unlovable underdogs. Them losing to the Trotters is one thing, but them losing after they cheated means they got what they deserved, rather then lost a fair fight.

Arguably, it might prove to be a good idea. While it is unclear how much that particular decision has affected it, the truth is that the Washington Generals games against the Globetrotters are more popular and successful than they ever were when the New York Nationals took on the boys from Harlem.

Whether this "updated" take on the Washington Generals will stick is something only time will reveal. But one thing that is clear, Schneider clearly recognizes the importance of the Washington Generals. That is that the Washington Generals are the iconic foils to the Harlem Globetrotters.

Whether they are playing fair, or borrowing a page from Wile E. Coyote's book of tricks, the fact that the man in charge realizes the importance of the Washington Generals gives this fan great hope for the teams future.