When I think about professional sport, I think about hostility. Not between two teams, not a hostile rivalry, but a hostile environment for everyone involved.
The second adjective I have glued to major North American professional sport is masculinity. In a world where many women play various sports professionally, ideas of masculinity are always attached to the women who play.
The last way I would describe professional sport to anyone would be to say it's inclusive; it's far from it.
A former NHL player, one I admit I couldn't stand, wrote an honest piece for the Players Tribune explaining his decision to leave his NHL career behind in favour of his own mental health.