Tuesday, March 15, 2005
Checking In
You may or may not have noticed, but I have been absent since the first of the month. I have no good excuse, I've just been working on other projects and spending far too much time playing MVP Baseball 2005 (I logged 8 hours on Sunday). My car was broken into as well so if you have any information that leads to the arrest of the hooligans responsible or the recovery of my manpurse, I will offer a substantial reward.
Since I began blogging, I have been all over Shaq like hair on a bear every time he opens his yapper about his former team and teammates. I think it's only fair that I make mention of his words in this morning's LA Times where The Big Fella shared his most humble analysis since The Big Breakup.
Referring to Dwyane Wade, Shaq said, "He's taught me a lot and I learned a lot from all my children that I've tutored. I've made a couple of mistakes with my first two, so I'm the type that can sit back and say, 'OK, I made a mistake. I shouldn't have done it this way. I should have done it the other way.' But me and him don't have that problem because of what I learned with my first two. It's such a good relationship because I know that I can't handle him like I handled the other two."
I am glad to see that Shaq has finally been able to calmly sit back and reflect on his days with Kobe (and Penny) and realize that in every failed relationship, the fault lays with both parties involved, even if it's more so on one than the other.
Speaking of Kobe, Joe sent me a great article that supports my stance that Kobe is not a selfish player and actually does make his teammates better. I wish I could have made my argument half as effectively as this writer does...
HoopsHype - Kobe: Perception vs. Reality
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Serena Boycotts Indian Wells Once Again...Because She Once Got Booed There
Cry me a river, Serena. That was four friggin' years ago. Do you really think those same boo-birds are going to jeer you again? Even if they did, even if they were even louder and prouder to boo you, why don't you take it like a man and play through like all other professional athletes do. Look at Barry Bonds, he absolutely loves it when Dodger fans boo him and even eggs them on. Even if you are overly sensitive and you let it hurt your feelings, what kind of competitor are you to just not show up? If you do that, the terrorists have won. You are one of the finest tennis players in the world right now and probably the most recognizable and marketable face in the sport. How about stepping up to that responsibility and showing a little toughness? Use the boos as motivation and take out your anger with every ferocious forehand. Make a rivalry out of this thing, Serena vs. The People of Indian Wells. I know it sounds like I'm trying to bring Luke Skywalker to the Dark Side here, but I don't think I'm asking for too much here. How will tennis ever get back to the glory it had in the McEnroe-Connors era if its biggest stars are always running from a good fight? Are today's tennis players too much like child actors growing up in that they are surrounded by Yes Men? I don't know enough to answer that question but I have seen enough to ask Serena to grow up or at least grow a pair.
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Since I began blogging, I have been all over Shaq like hair on a bear every time he opens his yapper about his former team and teammates. I think it's only fair that I make mention of his words in this morning's LA Times where The Big Fella shared his most humble analysis since The Big Breakup.
Referring to Dwyane Wade, Shaq said, "He's taught me a lot and I learned a lot from all my children that I've tutored. I've made a couple of mistakes with my first two, so I'm the type that can sit back and say, 'OK, I made a mistake. I shouldn't have done it this way. I should have done it the other way.' But me and him don't have that problem because of what I learned with my first two. It's such a good relationship because I know that I can't handle him like I handled the other two."
I am glad to see that Shaq has finally been able to calmly sit back and reflect on his days with Kobe (and Penny) and realize that in every failed relationship, the fault lays with both parties involved, even if it's more so on one than the other.
Speaking of Kobe, Joe sent me a great article that supports my stance that Kobe is not a selfish player and actually does make his teammates better. I wish I could have made my argument half as effectively as this writer does...
HoopsHype - Kobe: Perception vs. Reality
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Serena Boycotts Indian Wells Once Again...Because She Once Got Booed There
Cry me a river, Serena. That was four friggin' years ago. Do you really think those same boo-birds are going to jeer you again? Even if they did, even if they were even louder and prouder to boo you, why don't you take it like a man and play through like all other professional athletes do. Look at Barry Bonds, he absolutely loves it when Dodger fans boo him and even eggs them on. Even if you are overly sensitive and you let it hurt your feelings, what kind of competitor are you to just not show up? If you do that, the terrorists have won. You are one of the finest tennis players in the world right now and probably the most recognizable and marketable face in the sport. How about stepping up to that responsibility and showing a little toughness? Use the boos as motivation and take out your anger with every ferocious forehand. Make a rivalry out of this thing, Serena vs. The People of Indian Wells. I know it sounds like I'm trying to bring Luke Skywalker to the Dark Side here, but I don't think I'm asking for too much here. How will tennis ever get back to the glory it had in the McEnroe-Connors era if its biggest stars are always running from a good fight? Are today's tennis players too much like child actors growing up in that they are surrounded by Yes Men? I don't know enough to answer that question but I have seen enough to ask Serena to grow up or at least grow a pair.
# posted by j.h.k. @ 2:10 PM 
