Jan
26, 2001
NBA BASKETBALL
FAN EDITORIAL - - - - -
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Down
with Journalistic Cynicism!
By
MATTHEW FOSTER
The
middle-aged white guys who can't jump nor shoot yet can write articles
criticizing the NBA for its lack of skills, also seem to be particularly
sensitive to any criticism or argument against these pieces, and prone
to attack anybody who disagrees. I do believe that I am now in fact 'naive,'
prone to ignoring prominent articles in my favorite magazines, satisfied
with a dissatisfactory product and "hatin" on 6 foot white guys (of which
I am one, and an extremely skinny and unskilled one at that...it is highly
likely that I will one day be the middle-aged white guy who writes derogatory
articles that I criticize so vehemently at the moment). Thank you for your
analysis Mr. Rosier.
Truth
be told, I wrote my small piece because I felt Mr. Rosier was a little
too harsh on the players in the NBA. Unlike himself I am not a professional
journalist, I merely spent 10 minutes writing my views, realizing they
could be picked apart with great ease. But if he wants to play hardball...
Let
us start with the issue of SLAM Magazine (I really feel I should be getting
paid for all these free plugs...how 'bout it Russ Bengtson?). When I purchase
my copy monthly I give it a thorough read, from start to finish, including
(yes Mr. Rosier!) the old-school articles. This month's piece on Dave Cowens
was especially interesting because all I knew about this guy was that he
was/is a coach in the NBA. The NBA and its publications need to make sure
there are more articles like this so that we "naive" youngsters can learn
more about the brilliant history of the game. At no stage did I aim to
criticize the players from the past (and I'm not sure I did, I think Mr.
Rosier read my article a little too quickly before launching into his tirade),
I was merely arguing that with time only the glories of the past are remembered,
and as such the heroes of the past often have their roles in life exaggerated
to some degree. Yes, it's true, I don't get ESPN Classic, but I don't live
in the States for 10 months of the year either, so if Mr. Rosier wants
to pay for this luxury so I can be better schooled for argument then I'm
more than willing to accept his charity :)
While
I am talking about the history of the NBA, I would like to suggest that
David Stern and his NBA marketing gurus look to promote the history of
the game in a similar manner to that which baseball has done. Everyone
knows about 'the shot heard round the world', how many home runs Babe Ruth
hit in his career, how Lou Gehrig was so great and died so tragically,
and thousands of other great stories. All I know about the
history
of the NBA is that Wilt scored 100 points in some game. That's impressive,
but surely that isn't the only great story to emerge from the past 50 years
of the NBA??? Hey Mr. Insidehoops.com man, maybe this is something you
should be looking into? (Editor's Note: Why, yes. Yes, I should.)
Mr.
Rosier, Rick Barry was an excellent player. He led the NCAA, the ABA, and
the NBA in scoring. This is all true. That was my point. The "6 foot white
guys" of the past played a free-flowing, offensive-minded game. Defense
was not as heavily emphasized in the past as it has been in the last twenty
years. That was my point! In your first article you noted that NBA scoring
has been well down in recent years, and my suggestion for the reason that
this is occurring is because defense is of a higher priority now than when
games regularly had scores of 160-140, and not for the reason you stated
that players are fundamentally flawed offensively. Players are taller,
faster, and stronger now: the game is harder!
I've
watched the Lakers/Celtics games, I've watched the 76ers/Lakers finals,
I've seen the odd Bill Russell game. I still don't get your point in regards
to defense, Mr. Rosier; I would still suggest that as a whole there are
several teams in the NBA today who have a better defensive game. Please
forgive my "naivety".
Mr.
Rosier, I will love the NBA in its current state, thank you very much for
your permission to allow me to do so. Love is different to satisfaction
however. I would be truly naive if I believed that the level of play in
the NBA could not be improved, just as I would be naive to think that your
journalistic ability has not improved with time. But at its grassroots
level, basketball has never had such huge involvement and the general skill
level of the population is rising, not only here but all around the world.
I can hardly wait for the next generation of NBA players; it will truly
be a blast. So if you are that disgruntled with the NBA, go away and come
back in twenty years and hopefully you will be a much happier person.
The
main point that I want to raise is that while the NBA could be improved,
we should be thanking God that we have such a brilliant game and league
to watch in the first place. I'm just sick of seeing the media tear it
apart. Appreciate what you have, because where would we be without it?
A
little place called hell :)
(Quick
shout out to my friends, how about that for high drama guys?!?!?!)
