Remorse Isn't Picky
Okay, so I didn't get around to getting anything longer about Jennings near finished. Partly because it was drawing parallels between that and Manny's performance, which is stupid unless you attach a bunch of qualifiers to it. Or are drunk. Luckily, my argument is primarily about spectatorship and aesthetics, as you'll see tomorrow. But still, I felt I needed a little more distance, as I don't want anyone to kill me. I don't know, what do you think?
Instead, some Jennings odds and ends, to go with the "what do you think":
-My Baseline piece on what 55 really means for Jennings as a player.
-Ty Keenan proposes another read participation acitivity: Who can come up with the best Jennings/Minutemen joke?
-Toward the "what exactly happened in Italy?" question, Sixers4guidos translates and sends along part of a column published today in the Italian daily Il Messaggero. Title: "Jennings, From Bust to Scoring Star."
"We talk again about Jennings, considered a spoiled and insecure kid here in Rome... now a star in the NBA....he shocked the League with a stunning show... he did well also in preseason now he got attention from mainstream media and gained trust from many... but in Rome he was little considered... they never had faith in him, (giving him) few minutes on the court (and he produced) obviously few points... to be honest, he never excited (people) in the few occasions he played, even shoving an attitude that could have been considered ornery/morose... sure, US bball is different from european, few defense and many chances to show (someone's) shooting ability... he was the first to jump from high school to Europe..."
He's saving some other choice excerpts for his own spot, so check back there later. Update: Here's the post.
-Why do I think that by watching Jennings again tonight, it'll sort of be like getting to see John Wall's debut?
WHAT DO YOU THINK?!?!?!!?!??!?
Labels: audience participation, brandon jennings, bucks, europe, italy, sports writing
posted by Bethlehem Shoals @ 11/16/2009 05:14:00 PM
26 comments
26 Comments:
I don't know that I believe in "maturity beyond ones' years." I think the kid's all guile, in the best sense possible.
If you wanted to compare Jennings to Pacquiao then I think the best thing to do would be to compare the ring/court generalship to be equal. Both were never considered as cerebral athletes, but there performances Saturday showed otherwise.
Does Brandon Jennings jam econo? It may not be a joke, but you could definitely argue that Jennings' career so far has embodied the DIY spirit of the Minutemen. From going to Europe to just being Brandon Jennings. Maybe he's got a little Mike Watt in him.
I like the kid. He blazed a new path and although his stint in Rome was nothing amazing he has shown he's got the cajones to play in the league.
I'm burying this in here so no one ever sees it: Just realized that while I want to know the entire league, there are certain teams that after watching them once this year, I never feel like seeing again. As in, I cast a wide, but selective, net. That is why I should probably be fired as a sports writer and just start writing about music again.
Just of curiosity Shoals, what teams are not must-see tv? Don't tease us.
The Sixers have to be one of them.
They are horrible to watch.
You didn't give me free league pass so can't comment. Bucks in town against the celts in a few weeks....who would have thought that would be worth missing [fill in any tedious waste of an evening here]. If Jennings brings back the word 'moxy'....i will bow down.
Hawks/Nuggets/Bucks = Almost making me open my wallet and get league pass....
Still figuring that out, but I know the Bucks, Kings, and Nuggets are on there. Thunder, of course.
I've been slacking on the Hawks.
I'll tell you what I think: I'll eat my words on the over-exclamation, but I'm still not sold on Jennings over Rose. Kid killed, I'm not trying to doubt or hate, but floor generals have been more useful, in my experience. I'm scared of what he'd do to me personally, though, if he saw my words. And Rose doesn't scare me that way.
I also re-iterate that Comcast is the devil for keeping this night's game from me.
Who's the floor general here?
Double Nickels and 5 Dimes
And Dominguez HS is about 10 miles from San Pedro. So... there's that.
ten better than double nickels on the dime
please don't let brandon follow d. boon's career trajectory.
with skiles brandon is the perfect double nickels player: going the speed limit exactly, sneaky as all get out, going to fuck you up with everything else.
also, this feels way more meaningful than most high scoring games by someone with "questionable" character issues. (despite the fact that jennings seems like he is solid and dependable when it comes to anything basketball). jamal crawford 50's got nothing on this. it seems like a threat, but also totally casual. like dominance is the only potential outcome, he's just reminding you. i hate to compare such a young, basically raw player to modern kobe, but it feels the same way as how kobe has dropped exactly 41 three times already. like too much of a coincidence. less controlled maybe, but same kind of eerie significance to it. i think i probably just am jockin after seeing the 32 pt 9 assist game and then the double nickel, but brandon jennings feels like the player that spots 1-9 in the draft are going to seriously regret not taking. only dude who comes close in my opinion is tyreke evans. rubio/flynn/curry can suck it. never liked those dudes that much anyway. felt too establishment, like chewable candy vitamins.
I wish to comment on this blog post.
Brandon Jennings is very good.
I especially enjoy that comparisons to Allen Iverson are already considered obsolete. It reminds me of academia for an idea to go so quickly out of fashion.
I was not interested in basketball when Allen Iverson became drafted by the Philadelphia Seventy-Sixers.
However, I imagine the feeling of watching Brandon Jennings in his rookie year to be very similar to watching Allen Iverson in his rookie year.
~Robert
AI makes Jennings arrival into the NBA seem like a school boy.
AI I think was more punk than Jennings. He was defiant in ways that Jennings has quieted down. When AI came into the league with the cornrows, the baggy shorts, and the insane crossover--it was like every night some hall of famer would be coming out and talk about how he was ruining the game and had no respect for the game. Barkley, Karl Malone, even Jordan I think were pretty openly anti-Iverson.
It was a league of old men when Iverson came in and shook things up.
By contrast it's now a much younger league, and Lebron, Wade, Paul--none of these guys are going to have any problem with what Jennings has done or will do.
Iverson was inflamatory in his game. I don't think Jennings is that way. He's just kind of really really scary good. I don't even know who to compare him to. Nothing really fits. Which is a testament to true greatness.
I think maybe the divide is that Iverson was the product of the Jordan era. Iverson was the culmination of what growing up watching Jordan will do to someone of those skills. Jennings feels in some way related to what Kobe stands for. In so much as he seems to be toying with the stat box.
Shoals,
Jennings is amazing. The Knicks have to be kicking themselves. The kid is the show.
Stern must be all smiles. I can't help but feel like the league really needs this kid.
Shoals you mentioned the Kings as must see TV, and I agree. I was curious how you feel about their success despite missing Martin (another undersized do everything score/slasher), who you like (d)?
@ Mercurial
He may not offend the sensibilities of the "league elders," but I'd make the case that his entering the league is causing just as much a stir, because of his sojourn to Europe. He's not really changing the game, but he is changing basketball, and in that I feel like this is what it might have felt like to watch AI as a rookie.
let the products sell themselves
fuck advertising commercial psychology
psychological methods to sell should be destroyed
because of their own blind involvement
in their own conditioned minds
the unit bonded together
morals ideals awareness progress
let yourself be heard
Do You Want Jordan Hill or Do You Want The Truth?
thanks Nathaniel, I appreciate
never been a fan of comparisons so I won't comment on the Iverson/Jennings debate that I see raising there
but what Jennings is doing there is amazing, putting Milwaukee on the NBA map again, I'm glad for him and for Bucks fans
Jennings ruined it for every academically challenged highschool star with NBA caliber talent. No european team will splash 1.65 million after tax on a one and done project. This kid let european teams know that once again transition is difficult but also the right attitude and willingness to succeed in year one can be disguised before contract signing and straightforward indifference can be the end result.
Next accademically challenged youung talents will have to go to europe for much less or won't be even considered
@hans
I don't see that as a bad thing. I definitely think we'll see young guys going to 2nd tier euro leagues for more reasonable contracts (say 100/200 grand + euro perks). Thats more cash than they can get from college (unless they play for calipari). They still get better competition than in NCAA, there are lot of good coaches, they get to see the world, and the smaller teams get a huge marketing play from the young gun.
The best part about this overall is a competitive market will give players the best possible options and break the monopoly of the NCAA. DLeague, Europe, NCAA will all have something to offer and individuals can choose the right fit.
Maybe he didn't want to play in Italy???
Post a Comment
<< Home