OT/NBA Hostile Crowd@Warriors Owner during Jersey Retirement
I couldn't make the thread title any shorter and still indicate what exactly the thread is about.
Effectively, at the jersey retirement of Hall of Fame guard Chris Mullin, the Golden State Warrior crowd booed the absolute shit out of new owner Joe Lacob as he attempted to deliver some words on Mullin. To no avail, Chris tried to subdue the crowd, but as soon as he returned to his seat the chorus of boos returned. Fellow HOFer Rick Barry had a harsher tone when trying to get the crowd to settle down and similarly failed.
The fans of the Warriors have a few things to be upset about, but the likely trigger of the outcry was the recent trade of star guard Monta Ellis for injured Milwaukee Bucks center Andrew Bogut.
I post the thread in the hopes of eliciting discussion on the role of the disgruntled fan and the times and places that displeasure can be voiced.
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7711659/golden-state-warriors-retire-…
http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/39043/chris-mullins-jersey-r…
Would it have killed him to put a little preparation into his speech? Maybe commit it to memory, and practice it once or twice?
He makes a bad situation worse by pulling a Rick Perry out there: "Tonight is about two things: History and . . . " (thinks to self "dammit -- what was the other thing? better check my notes" . . . checks notes . . . "oh yeah, 'respect'") . . . "and respect."
March 20th, 2012 at 11:24 AM ^
Too bad for Mullin on his night, but I can't blame the fans. Owners are rarely in a place where there is fan interaction.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:26 AM ^
I wonder who isn't liked more? The Warriors owner or the Clippers owner? Yes, the Clippers have Chris Paul now, but is that really gonna erase all the other years of misery?
March 20th, 2012 at 11:47 AM ^
Donald Sterling is pretty much loathed universally. He only ran the team well enough to turn a profit and didn't care much for developing players or producing wins.
He's been involved in a few lawsuits whose decisions would paint him in an unflattering light, and he even went to a game to heckle his own players! Guy's a douche.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:36 PM ^
And then there's being sued by the Department of Justice for racist practices-
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=jones/060810
So yeah, Sterling is practically in a class by himself.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:27 AM ^
I'm very sympathetic to them, probably from having lived near the travesty that is the Bengals and their tax-funded stadium. I wish more fans would steal a line from Hunter Thompson and tell their teams' owners "there is some sh*t we won't eat."
March 20th, 2012 at 11:28 AM ^
But I really hate the NBA with a passion right now. From "The Decision" to Linsanity, I just can't find myself to watch it. Maybe it's because the Pistons are not good anymore and a part of me died when they traded Chauncey. I just have a hard time watching when it's a players driven league. Also, the Tim Donaghy scandal didn't help anything.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:52 AM ^
I can find a lot of reasons to dislike the NBA (yet still love it), but do not count Linsanity among them. The first Harvard player in almost 60 years, first asian PG to make an NBA roster, and an undrafted journeyman (three teams in two seasons), combined with the amazing statistics and win rate of those first eight/nine games, were indeed historical.
The hype was deserved to some degree, but ESPN generally needs to STFU and stop running stories into the ground.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:49 PM ^
He's not asian. He's "asian american" This was from some Asian media group on the correct covering of it after the "chink in the armor headline"
Excuse me while i go barf at how everything is racist.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:52 PM ^
But by that reasoning, wouldn't he just be "American"? One would be his race; the other would be his nationality.
Yes. But they want us to celebrate his asian heritage, while noting he is not in fact from Asia.
Hypocrisy at its finest.
A person would be wrong to say that Lin is the first Asian player to play at a high level in the NBA b/c that would be Yao Ming (if not someone whom I'm forgetting). And that, of course, is only if you don't count Russians as Asians (just what the hell continent do they belong to, anyway?).
I don't point out the above to scold anyone. I'm just saying that there is a difference.
In the case of Russians, doesn't it simply come down to which part of Russia they're from? If they're from the European part (where most Russians live), they would be European. If from Asia, Asian.
Is there a definite line re: which part of Russia is European and which part is Asian?
EDIT: From Wikipedia:
Russian regions' borders follow the continental divide (Ural Mountains and Ural River) more often than not. There is also the relatively small 2600 square kilometer Sochi area of Russia in Asia, bordering Georgia and located south of the main Caucasus watershed. Orenburg on the Ural River is a transcontinental city.
So I assume that you're right.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:56 AM ^
Don't mean to rip a sport on it's own thread (cough, 14 year old soccer haters), but I'm struck by just how asinine the actual games/entertainment has become. I feel like I'm at a WWF event, with trick shooting-mascots, screaming announcers (ALLLEEEEEYYYY OOOOOPPPP THREEEEE BY LEBRRRRROOOONNNNNNNNNN....as the Heat were down 15 with 2 minutes to play), boorish players, childish owners (Cuban... looking at your tantrums), and a sport that disregards any semblance of "team play" (see Carmelo's glorious return to the Knicks).
PS- I bet 97% of Americans don't know what city "Golden State" is in... nice desperate attempt to associate themselves with an entire state, a strategy that has worked so well with expansion teams heading to random (for the sport) cities. See: Florida Panthers.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:20 PM ^
I hate the NBA...so much...but Mark Cuban is one of the only redeeming parts of the league.*
The dude is passionate and wants to win. Most of his fines are about officiating - which is terrible in the NBA (traveling might as well be taken out of the rulebook and flip a coin on fouls by non-star players). He spends money but lets his GM do his job. He's your blue collar fan if that fan happened to pocket two billion dollars when he sold his company.
Criticize Donald Sterling for being a cheap ass that values a small profit over ever winning. Criticize James Dolan for being a coke-headed trust fund jackass that gave Isiah Thomas a contract extension after he went around MSG groping people. Criticize Michael Jordan for generally being a terrible person everywhere but the basketball court.
I never understand the criticism for Cuban.
*Although I agree with your general sentiment about the NBA
March 20th, 2012 at 12:38 PM ^
I agree with you. I'd much rather have an owner that wants to win than one that only cares about margins.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:43 PM ^
I think Cuban goes too far sometimes, but the guy does everything he can to win. And anyone who tweeks lord and master Stern is ok in my book. That's a guy who thinks his shit doesn't stink. (And really, how wrong is he about the NBA refs? They had a major ref admitting to fixing games!)
But I'd have +1 you just for the Michael Jordan comment. (Though to be fare, you're right about Isiah too. I can't imagine there are more assholes among major players in the NBA that other sports....so do they just do a much worse job hiding the fact that they are assholes? I guess baseball has had some problems in that category, but the NFL does such a good job at whitewashing their stars, maybe the NBA need to steal some of their people. I mean, even though in Detroit we hate most of them, even the NHL does a good job of creating a good image for their best players).
March 20th, 2012 at 12:19 PM ^
This 1,000 times. I could not agree more.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:23 PM ^
It's funny. I've grown up so accustomed to the name "Golden State" that I never really thought about how weird it is for a sports team. A state nickname?
March 20th, 2012 at 12:50 PM ^
And even some cutesy play on words, like Buffalo Bills. But teams named after a region? I guess New England. But the only place where you can't actually go to see the team play that comes to mind is Tampa Bay. Because the city isn't Tampa "Bay", it's just Tampa. You'd need scuba gear to watch them play in Tampa Bay. (Always sticks in my mind because I once did an Itinerary for a trip and put "Bay" in reflexively, because I really think of the football team more than I do the city). And none of those are nicknames.\
Edit: After a little Google, also found the Carolina Panthers. Not North or South, just Carolina.
I was flipping through the minor league team selections on NHL '11 with my son the other day, and we cam across the Lake Erie Monsters. Which is just fabulous. First off all, the nickname: so obvious, but so rarely used. If I ever create a sports franchise, I'm probably going to call it "the Monsters." But second, they're from where? A lake? You'd also need scuba gear there, I guess -- athough if they only played home games on the frozen lake, complete with snow drifts for side boards, that would be truly awesome.
You may have found my favorite minor league team ever. How awesome is that? In a sports world where you have had "The Monsters of the Midway", how has someone not snatched that up? If you get half a billion dollars the same time I do, and want to go into co-ownership I am so there. (and particularly great for a Great Lakes team, because lake monsters have such a long tradition in myth....or ARE THEY myth???)
This is what happens when you have hockey in a place with no ice.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:57 AM ^
watch an entire NBA game. It is an impossible endeavor.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:59 AM ^
March 20th, 2012 at 12:14 PM ^
I think the term "player driven" doesn't mean that other sports don't feature their stars as the FACE of the franchise (think Brady in New England), but that the NBA seems to be entirely driven by the key aquisition of a select group of players (30 total in the league? Kobe, Howard and friends) and, as a result, lacks the team work other sports require. Think about ESPN highlights, I can tell you how many points Kobe is averaging and what girly-little-fights he is currently involved in with former players, but I can't name more than two players on any team, save the select few elite teams. I think it is fan opposition to essentially watching "Kobe vs. LeBron!" vs. "Redwings vs. Avalanche".
I would suggest paying less attention to advertising campaigns and more attention to actual games. This would 1) allow you to actually recognize rosters, and 2) allow you to appreciate basketball at its highest form.
This WSJ essay goes a little overboard in knocking college ball, but it's clear that the level of play in the NBA is far, far superior: better shooting, higher basketball IQs, much better defense, etc.
March 25th, 2012 at 11:09 AM ^
I'd hope the NBA is a LOT better than standard college ball, which includes what, 200 some DIV-I teams? And especially with basketball, which really only requires 7-8 players on a team, there is a VERY select group who are even able to reach the league. Think of Morris, a star on Michigan and he can't even stay on a roster. Not really coaching or effort, just pure difference in skill and the population of each sample.
March 25th, 2012 at 11:09 AM ^
I'd hope the NBA is a LOT better than standard college ball, which includes what, 200 some DIV-I teams? And especially with basketball, which really only requires 7-8 players on a team, there is a VERY select group who are even able to reach the league. Think of Morris, a star on Michigan and he can't even stay on a roster. Not really coaching or effort, just pure difference in skill and the population of each sample.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:30 AM ^
while called golden state, they play in oakland, and i am sure that the fans there rival philly in terms of behavior. nevertheless, golden state has been irrelevant for pretty much my entire life, even RunTMC was not really a contender, a fun team, though.
The TMC era ran right into the Chirs Webber era. I think they also had Sarunas Marciulionis - one of my favorite "imported players" of all time -- around then as well.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:31 AM ^
does this get posted on here, but not anything about Miguel Cabrera getting hit in the face yesterday? Thats at least about Detroit Sports, thank god it wasn't anything serious but it was a pretty scary moment during the game yesterday.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:33 AM ^
March 20th, 2012 at 11:39 AM ^
Have enough points, and even if I did I wouldn't make a post about it. I'm just saying that this news is really off-topic where as the Miggy news would have been less off-topic. I don't know I guess I forget sometimes that this blog is full of people from all around the country and not just Michigan.
EDIT: now would be the time to make a thread about the Miguel Cabrera thing cause it just got reported that he is going to miss a couple weeks with a small fracture in his face.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:20 PM ^
It will show up...
...or you can make a nontuple post and create the thread yourself.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:38 AM ^
Was the owner responsible for that trade? Usually owners are pretty hands-off.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:44 AM ^
owners approve the trades from the GM's, the GM's faciltate the trades but at the end of the day the owners usually have the final say if the trade happens or not.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:41 AM ^
any by pausing all over the place and letting the boos mount
The lecture by Berry wasn't very helpful either.
March 20th, 2012 at 11:53 AM ^
I find it funny that the NBA is called a player-driven league, but when Peyton Manning went out for the year the Colts went to last place and when Brady got injured they went from Super Bowl to missing playoffs.
The media makes the NBA seem to be player-driven because NBA stars are bigger stars, but it's not anymore player-driven than anywhere else. Look at how many solid squads that are out there without star athletes. Half the teams in the playoffs last year were built as teams, not superstars.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:30 PM ^
One reason: Name a REALLY likeable player in the league right now....
Okay, there are a few (Lin, Griffin, a few more)... but the vast majority seem like total chach-bags who only care about themselves and the diva lives (maybe other sports' players are just better at hiding it). I mean, didn't two Nets players try to shoot eachother?
March 20th, 2012 at 12:35 PM ^
was two Wizard players. Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton, just some rich wanna-be thugs trying to act like they were gangsters.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:36 PM ^
Kevin Durant <3
Wait a second, didn't you just say that you can't name more than two people on most NBA rosters? For a guy who pays almost zero attention to the league, you seem to have a lot to say about its players' personality profiles.
March 25th, 2012 at 11:05 AM ^
To be honest, I had to google "oklahoma city (then tried to remember their obvious-expansion-team-nickname) thunder roster" and went through it until I recognized a name... but I was scared someone would revoke my MANCARD.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:33 PM ^
The Pats still went 11-5 that season and only lost because Miami had an unusually strong year and beat them out on a tie break as well as losing the tie break to an 11-5 Baltimore team. Hardly the same league as what happened to the Colts. One data point from the NFL pales in comparison to the reliance of the NBA on a couple stars for a team to be successful and legit contenders for the championship.
March 20th, 2012 at 12:58 PM ^
Peyton Manning can get cut by his team, and Orlando has to fight off rumors that Dwight Howard gets to pick the next Coach and GM if he wants.
(And if you odn't think Bill Belichick would push Brady aside the minute he has no use for him anymore...someone should tell Brady, who won't allow his backup to get reps. Or the guy Brady replaced).
March 20th, 2012 at 11:53 AM ^
I think that's embarrassing for the fans. Completely took away from the moment for Mullins. I guess I'm not entirely surprised though, since it is Oakland.
What do you mean, you are not surprised, it is Oakland? Do you live here? Or do you just read newspaper headlines?