Hate is a family value
FreeDarko continues its association with the Chicago Sports Review as Barry Provisar (not his real name) drops his meditation on the NBA's most hated players. Those indicted shouldn't come as a surprise to any longtime readers of the blog or any attentive fans of the game, although the inclusion of the man they call Starbury might raise an eyebrow or two among the neophytes. While other publications have long celebrated the Brooklyn dynamo, his out for dolo style has always rubbed FD's fur in a most unpleasant way. Also note how the light that once shined warmly upon Employee #8 and D-Miles has grown harsh over time.
If the CSR piece only leaves you hungry for more roundball discourse, consider stopping by the NBA Carnival, hosted by our pal Mutoni over at Bench Renaldo.
posted by Brown Recluse, Esq. @ 8/29/2006 11:13:00 AM
26 comments
26 Comments:
Fun piece. What of Ron Artest? As is often the case, he seems to be a complexifying force at the center of a vortex. His game is capable of admiration by both right-wayers and devotees of the league of psychology. But the former cannot abide anything else about him, and his particular psychology is likely divisive for the latter.
Entirely off-topic, but this is the top post, so it gets discussion of the most recent news: NELLIE RETURNS TO GOLDEN STATE! Can I safely begin to dream of a team worth watching (even if it won't be winning), or should I continue to accept that the franchise is ruined beyond all reclamation?
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2565022
Devean George is fully likeable. Straight outta DIII, kept his mouth shut. Dunks well.
Nellie returning to Golden State is huge news. Mullin was like hmmm, we have a team of people who score at will and hate playing defense and have no playoff experience...who would be a good coach? Hmmmm...
The JT/Will.I.Am. song is FREEDARKO, making the Black Eyed Peas not--as previously proclaimed--the least FD musicians of all time.
which one of y'all is the UT alum? I got my masters there.
in theory i will be some day.
the high-water mark for kobe-hatred may have crested in a bath of foaming vitriol with his colorado jumpoff and the ego-fueled destruction of the lakers' dynasty (from all parties, no doubt), but to reinvent his playoff "run" as one that "silenced many doubters" is simply rumsfeldian in its wanton disregard of actual events.
you clearly don't need to be reminded that the lakers gagged on a 3-1 series lead, a historic collapse, in fact, and one culminated with a 35-point loss in a game where kobe transparently threw in the towel early in the second half. did that episode of uncharacteristically pensive paly and almost nonchalant weirdness make him more human, more interesting, more -- dare we say it -- likable? sure. but to flippantly recount the series as one in which doubters were finally sonned and believers were glorious validated is pure wishful revisionism. please don't make this a storyline worthy of further repetition.
sometimes, in a jaunty piece inspired by a text message, you have to cut some corners to make it all work. do i remember all of this? yes. am i fascinated by the suggestion that game 7 made him more human? yes.
is it "simply rumsfeldian" to claim that his play in that series changed the way a lot of people see him? does the outcome of the series INDISPUTABLY nullify what he was able to do? no and no.
is yours the most acerbic comment i've gotten about this? no, that would be:
your so such a fool a lost soul a wanna be ball player but yet and still a closet freak so what you can write silly little poems it still matters your a pervert everyone you wrote about today could care less you are mentally disturbed and broke and never ever going to be a STAR!!!!!
I'm a fair amount of a fan, but I know many who dislike Gary Payton. They cite the least professional play in modern basketball, in the 2006 NBA finals, with about 3 minutes left in game six and things still very much on the line, Payton brings the ball up the court, starts an argument with a ref, ignoring play, and absorbed enough to miss a pass that bounced off his hip and out of bounds.
I know of no one who would wear a Greg Ostertag jersey. Not even in jest.
Shoals - I used to receive emails of similar style (but not content) when I was putting up 85% of my Jordan collection up for sale on eBay. I made a pact with myself not to respond to anyone who made a mistake with your/you're or there/their/they're.
It cut down on the number of emails I needed to respond to by 90%.
I like to imagine Doug Christie typing that, sobbing over the keyboard. Mrs. Christie rubs his back: "Don't worry sweety, I won't let that bad man hurt you any more... would you like some tea?"
Doug, upper lip quivering, replies: "Ye-yes."
"Awww, sweety."
Flourish, curtain, exeunt.
Other hateable players worth mentioning: Ricky Davis, Sean Bradley, Keith Van Horn, Danny Fortson, Stephen Jackson, Manu Ginobili, Bruce Bowen, and of course, Kwame "who on da logo?" Brown.
Don't forget, Alonzo Mourning, Kidney Stealer.
What I'd like to know is, who is the most hated by the actual players? By the coaches? I wonder if that list would be dramatically different from the fans' list.
another reason to hate boozer... the man sued prince! for an unauthorised makeover of his house! Would prince making over your house not be one of the funniest things that could possibly happen? surely not grounds to sue.
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0320063prince1.html
Picayune clarification to the article, but Marbury and Richard Jefferson have never played on the same team. RJ and Kidd both came to New Jersey in summer of '01 (that stately pleasure dome of tax cuts, chandra levy, and shark attacks)
you can't justify not putting Tim Thomas on that list.
anon 9:42 - ricky davis is INCREDIBLY freedarko, and s-jax, manu, and kwame all have their supporters. bradley and van horn are a little too obvious. and fortson is just insane.
so, the last time i could really say i was a marbury fan was that "all nude, but tastefully done" commercial with KG, but i do have to say i admire what he's trying to do with the shoe thing, as chris broussard reminds us. i think he'll have more success with it than hakeem did. street cred and all.
i was once the world's biggest ricky davis fan, but have cooled on him some over the last couple of years. wouldn't say i quite hate him yet, though.
and yes, tim thomas shoud've been on there. i am kicking myself mentally for having forgotten him at the last minute (he was on my first few lists). in my defense, though, it's kind of the same situation as kandiman, just a lot less complicated and almost apodictic.
(if anyone's planning to call me out on the spelling of that last word, don't even think it would make me look bad)
Not having insider anymore is killing me. Not that it's terribly important, but i'd love to read what sheridan and other people are shooting their mouth off about after the US's pretty poor win over germany. I mean, they won by 20 and played great D, but germany isn't very good. It's a one man show, and their defense isn't that great. Greece's zone has been pretty killer from what i've seen this tourney. Their offense is strong too with popadopoulus anchoring the frontcourt. I don't know what the US is gonna do for this game. They better not be looking ahead to argentina/spain because greece is way too good. I just pray that i don't end up having to shell out money for an insider account. I know i'll find one sooner or later.
I still haven't decided whether or not i'm gonna stay up late/wake up early to watch the game live, or tivo it and just not watch sportscenter or go on the internet the next day till i watch it.
is the chinese basketball association (cba) draft of any interest? God Shammgod got drafted.
http://www.usba-inc.com/cba_draft.php
way to beg for insider access dude.
some of you may remember that time we talked about fantasy football and freedarko in football, and what a freedarko fantasy football team would look like.
here's your answer. third pick in a fourteen team league. the last few picks might be out of order, and i can only remember one IDP
tomlinson
bush
gates
roy williams
culpepper
lee evans
frank gore
matt jones
lawrence maroney
drew brees
winslow
and some defenses, and some IDPs, including Frostee Rucker.
this might be the most amazing team i've ever assembled, in any sport.
WV: tugmnoiq=electro masterpiece about the harbor
really? a second round pick on Bush?
As to players hatin' players - there's ample evidence that Bruce Bowen tops that list. KB24 might be up there.
(Are we talking about hating the player .. . or the game?)
WV: drcobb - I don't even need to translate that one. Dr Cobb indeed.
i swore to myself that i would at least get bush and gates. williams or andre johnson. matt jones if possible. i doubt i'll make any real noise, but this is about the most entertaining team i can imagine.
i can't imagine that players hate kobe the same way they do bowen. kobe is a criminal mastermind; bowen is a petty thief.
I was completely wrong, and the conspiracy theorists on this site were completely right. arenas on being off team usa:
<-
"No joke, I felt like I was the 16th man on a 15-man roster," Arenas said. "You are there to support your team and support your country and be happy to play but you know, I did everything they wanted me to do; but if I did everything they wanted me to do, why am I on the bubble of getting cut? I sacrificed. You've got LeBron being LeBron. You've got Carmelo being Carmelo. You've got D-Wade being D-Wade. Why can't I be me? Why do I have to transform? I did that and now you are going to cut me?"
Arenas said he plans on reserving a little extra effort for two Team USA assistant coaches: Portland Trail Blazers head coach Nate McMillan and Phoenix Suns head coach Mike D'Antoni. "I'm going to be the silent assassin this year," he said. "I can't wait to play the Suns and Portland. Against Portland, Nate McMillan, I'm going to try to score 100 in two games and against D'Antoni, I'm going to score 100 in two games. I'm going to try."
->
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/30/AR2006083003244.html
the worst part of this is that its so dumb. arenas was great in the exhibition round, and him and wade were the best backcourt of any combo. now that arenas is gone, wade's effectiveness seems to have decreased a lot, and again the usa can't shoot.
the only other thing we've learned so far: carmelo is way better than everyone thought--an equal with lebron and wade. this means that the nuggets, george karl, and Kiki Vandeweghe are way worse than we thought.
Anyone know the definitive EST schedule for tomorrow's games? Greece-USA 3:30, Spain-Argentina 6:30?
As a Canadian, I have money riding on "anybody but USA"... but when I made the bet I thought they'd have to get past both Spain and Argentina to win it.
how do people figure that if carmelo is blowing up at worlds, that george karl is holding him back? isn't it possible that carmelo is playing so well at least in part because of the way karl coached him? i know he wanted melo to get in better shape, which he has done. also, melo was already looking dominant the last third of last season, so it's not like this is coming out of nowhere.
sometimes, i think i'm the only george karl fan in the world. he can be a dick, but the guy wins.
Post a Comment
<< Home