ESPN takes "joke poll" too far?

If you've ever visited the Page 2 section of ESPN.Com (sports.espn.go.com), you know that their humor tends to be a bit on the "edgy" side of things ... I have no problem with that, but yesterday's poll (poking fun at all the recent success that the Boston sports teams have had and the jealousy this has stirred up in the rest of the country) may have crossed a line:

Big thanks to Chuck McKenney (redsarmy.wordpress.com) for
saving the URL to the poll (sports.espn.go.com) after ESPN took it off their site

Obviously, the Page 2 Crew was trying to make light of the fact that non-New Englanders were wishing ill will against the Boston sports scene ... to have something (anything!) happen to break their recent string of good fortune. But seriously - Kevin Garnett blow out his knee? "Wishing" that a future Hall of Famer would miss significant playing time, possibly putting his career in danger?

Why not say Kevin Garnett catch the flu? How about Kevin Garnett demand a trade? Or Kevin Garnett goes "Rodzilla" and gets suspended for kicking a cameraman in the nuts? Y'know, something that didn't involve a career-threatening injury?

Hmm, I wonder what Bill Simmons had to say about all this (youtube.com) ...

I know what KG had to say (bostonherald.com):

A poll on ESPN.com's Page 2 yesterday may have been intended as edgy humor, but one of the poll's subjects - Kevin Garnett - called this entry "distasteful."

The poll, drawing on the sports world's current enmity toward Boston, asked users to vote for the event they would rather see happen - the Steelers beating the Patriots [team stats], Johan Santana being traded to any team but the Red Sox [team stats], or Garnett blowing out his knee.

That's right, blowing out his knee.

Garnett, his mouth ajar in disbelief upon hearing about the poll after last night's game, recovered long enough to say, "Wow, that's really distasteful, man. Man, I mean, that's my life, my career. You don't joke about something like that."

Garnett then leaned toward the nearest door - made of wood, naturally - and rapped his knuckles on it, before asking a team official to contact ESPN to register his dismay.

At least poll results showed that almost no one chose the Garnett option. Perhaps even readers were scared off by the question's mean-spirited nature.

Celtics [team stats] coach Doc Rivers certainly wasn't happy.

"That's classless," Rivers said. "I know it's a joke, but you should never wish for someone's injury. That's all I have to say about that, but it's classless."

By late last night the Boston question had been replaced by a Heisman Trophy query.

Gee, considering the fact that Garnett will be featured in a big "This is SportsCenter" ad this Tuesday (boston.com), you'd think ESPN would do everything in their power not to piss him off ... Could a Celtics boycott of the "Worldwide Leader" be on the horizon?