Greg Oden started in his first NBA game since 2009 when he broke his kneecap playing for the Portland Trail Blazers. He had already suffered micro-knee fracture surgery and would undergo the same surgery two more times in the next three years. Needless to say, it was a less than ideal start for Oden who was drawing comparisons to Hakeem and Patrick Ewing upon entering the league.
Anthony Bennett, who the Cleveland Cavaliers drafted number one overall in 2013, hasn't exactly lived up to the expectations that come with being the top draft pick. Bennett was definitely a surprise and didn't have the hype around him that Oden did when he entered the league, but that doesn't make the scrutiny around him disappear.
Is Greg Oden a disappointment? What about Anthony Bennett? Did the Blazers and the Cavs completely screw up those draft picks? How can one player get injured all the time? How come the other just isn't as talented as we all thought he was?
Both players are complete busts.
I've seen those words written about both players (more notably for Oden given the aforementioned expectations) with shocking frequency. It doesn't come as a shock that these conversations take place given our affinity for professional sports and the enormous media landscape behind it. When you look at it from the perspective of a sports fan, it is a completely fair discussion.
But what about when we take a step back and think of these young men (don't forget just how young they really are) as just employees for a business? This is their job and they do absolutely everything that they can to get back on track. I don't think that either Oden or Bennett give anything less than 100% when it comes to their profession.
When I think of it as a job, not just two guys who are playing a sport, it saddens me quite a bit to see how much pleasure some people get out of their struggles. Imagine if the next time you were at the office and you messed up on a project, you saw people exchanging emails about what a screw-up you were. People snickering when they find out that you've hit another bump.
I recognize that this is comparing apples and oranges a little bit. And I am not saying that their performance can't be examined closely. But there is no denying that at the end of the day, we expect to be treated with respect from our coworkers and peers with respect to our jobs, just like we should treat them with the same respect. And part of that is not hoping for their failure because it amuses us.
Greg Oden finished with five points and five rebounds today. Anthony Bennett finished with four points and four rebounds. But I'm pulling hard for both of them. They're doing their jobs and deserve more respect than they get. Because we expect the same for us.
Sunday, 23 February 2014
Monday, 17 February 2014
My NBA Mount Rushmore
One of the big conversations around the NBA All-Star game this year was who would be the four players on your Mount Rushmore of basketball. I certainly didn't want to be left out of the conversation, so here are my thoughts for the four faces that make their way onto the iconic rock:
Who would be in your Mount Rushmore of NBA players?
- Michael Jordan
- Could this one be any more obvious? The man IS the NBA in so many ways. 50 years from now, we will still be talking about the shrug, the flu game, the shot and the push-off (depends on who you ask). With any luck, we'll have burned any records that remind us that he is one of the worst executives in NBA history.
- Larry Bird
- 3x NBA champ, 3x MVP, 9x 1st team All NBA and a whole bunch of other accolades that aren't worth listing out because it would take way too much time. Tough as nails, but with a shooting touch as soft as fresh sheets in the summertime. Plus, you're telling me his face wouldn't look great chiseled out in rock?
- Oscar Robertson
- The man revolutionized the point guard position. He is the only player in NBA history to average a triple-double for an entire season. I don't care if the pace of play was insanely high that year; averaging a triple double over the course of 82 games is something we might not ever see again.
- Tim Duncan
- Yeah, okay, so maybe I am biased because he is the best player that I can remember watching the entire duration of his career. But his statistics, consistency and team's relevancy for his time in the league is nearly unmatched. Timmy D may not be the sexiest player in NBA history, but he is damn sure one of the best. As a sidenote, there would be some construction issues trying to make his eyes pop out like they do when he is upset about a call.
Who would be in your Mount Rushmore of NBA players?
Is LeBron James against supporting the troops? No. Just stop.
Following Saturday's seriously climactic finish of USA vs. Russia in hockey, where TJ Oshie rightfully became a household name after willing the US to victory in a shootout, fans were treated to a great post-game interview. Hockey players make for some of the best interviews in my opinion because most of them have clearly not had media training and seem to genuinely love what they do.
TJ Oshie is no different. He said all of the right things in several interviews - the thanks should go to US goalie Jonathan Quick, this was really a solid team effort, forecheck, forecheck and forecheck some more - and, of course, in what has become a strange motif of all sporting interviews, Oshie brushes off the title of hero and says that "the American heroes are wearing camo."
Nobody doubts that our American soldiers, whether overseas or based here in the US, are truly heroes for which we all owe great thanks. Athletes, in particular, have become rather fond of praising the troops whenever the opportunity arises. Great! The more appreciation and recognition, the better.
Then a curious thing started happening. This meme started to make its way around Facebook:
You know what, I don't even have the time to sit here and pretend to be diplomatic about this. If you liked this meme on Facebook, retweeted it, shared it on Instagram or whatever form of social media you used - you are dumber than a lobotomized pig and I think less of you.
You're totally right - LeBron is definitely against the troops and is completely selfish for saying that he likes being seen as a role model. Anyone who embraces that fact and is cognizant that it affects his actions on and off the court clearly cares about nobody but himself. No, that makes plenty of sense. I mean, how DARE he suggest that he can serve as a level to aspire to for kids and adults of any age. Coupled with the audacity of not showing love for the troops? ASSHOLE.
Seriously, though, can someone please explain this to me? Why are we trying to vilify LeBron here? It's not like he does about 45x (at LEAST) the number of interviews that TJ Oshie does on a yearly basis and has almost certainly given his thanks to the troops at some point.
Oh, wait. Yes, he has - LeBron James does right by troops. Thank you, internet archives, for allowing me to Google that in approximately 10 seconds and post it to show just how truly idiotic people are for making this comparison.
Supporting the troops is a given. Saying it in every single interview is not a requirement. Especially for a guy who is interviewed multiple times a week.
And promoting bull shit memes like this perpetuates the stereotype of the self-absorbed, thinks-he's-the-greatest-of-all-time black athlete and nobody should stand for it.
LeBron James is a hero to millions of people around the world for his works on and off the court. TJ Oshie is a hero to so many patriots in this country who feel that the Olympics stand for something more than just sports. And the troops that support us are certainly heroes as well - a fact that barely needs repeating at this point.
It's great to remind ourselves that there isn't just one type of heroes in this world.
TJ Oshie is no different. He said all of the right things in several interviews - the thanks should go to US goalie Jonathan Quick, this was really a solid team effort, forecheck, forecheck and forecheck some more - and, of course, in what has become a strange motif of all sporting interviews, Oshie brushes off the title of hero and says that "the American heroes are wearing camo."
Nobody doubts that our American soldiers, whether overseas or based here in the US, are truly heroes for which we all owe great thanks. Athletes, in particular, have become rather fond of praising the troops whenever the opportunity arises. Great! The more appreciation and recognition, the better.
Then a curious thing started happening. This meme started to make its way around Facebook:
You know what, I don't even have the time to sit here and pretend to be diplomatic about this. If you liked this meme on Facebook, retweeted it, shared it on Instagram or whatever form of social media you used - you are dumber than a lobotomized pig and I think less of you.
You're totally right - LeBron is definitely against the troops and is completely selfish for saying that he likes being seen as a role model. Anyone who embraces that fact and is cognizant that it affects his actions on and off the court clearly cares about nobody but himself. No, that makes plenty of sense. I mean, how DARE he suggest that he can serve as a level to aspire to for kids and adults of any age. Coupled with the audacity of not showing love for the troops? ASSHOLE.
Seriously, though, can someone please explain this to me? Why are we trying to vilify LeBron here? It's not like he does about 45x (at LEAST) the number of interviews that TJ Oshie does on a yearly basis and has almost certainly given his thanks to the troops at some point.
Oh, wait. Yes, he has - LeBron James does right by troops. Thank you, internet archives, for allowing me to Google that in approximately 10 seconds and post it to show just how truly idiotic people are for making this comparison.
Supporting the troops is a given. Saying it in every single interview is not a requirement. Especially for a guy who is interviewed multiple times a week.
And promoting bull shit memes like this perpetuates the stereotype of the self-absorbed, thinks-he's-the-greatest-of-all-time black athlete and nobody should stand for it.
LeBron James is a hero to millions of people around the world for his works on and off the court. TJ Oshie is a hero to so many patriots in this country who feel that the Olympics stand for something more than just sports. And the troops that support us are certainly heroes as well - a fact that barely needs repeating at this point.
It's great to remind ourselves that there isn't just one type of heroes in this world.
Wednesday, 12 February 2014
Is BusinessInsider or its readers the problem?
While perusing Twitter today, I came across a link to a Business Insider article. It was a standard BI type of article where the news was kept fairly high-level, digestible and concisely written - just a quick snapshot of the news and why it was important.
I think that there is a certain amount of that that is healthy for readers in today's fast-paced world. Many would argue that we can only take in so many pieces of information in a given day, so it is better to get as many 1000 feet views of numerous topics than it is to develop an in-depth understanding of a few select issues.
But too much of that and we start to lose the significance of issues by glancing over some of the nuances. And that is where I start to get a little frustrated with a publication like Business Insider. In addition to its click-baiting (save that for another day), it would prefer a gatling gun style approach where it guns down issues left and right rather than focusing on some truly solid reporting on bigger issues. Ultimately it is the reader who loses out when this happens.
Take for instance an article that came out just before the Olympics - 16 Crazy Anecdotes About Sex In The Olympic Village. Never mind the fact that the title of the article would seem to suggest that these are direct anecdotes the journalist acquired, the entire article is simply a "listicle" of a truly excellent piece of journalism that Sam Alipour put together for ESPN two years ago just before the 2012 London Olympics - Will you still medal in the morning?
The ESPN article is long by our "this article seems interest...holy shit there's a squirrel!!" attention spans. But I have read this ESPN article before and I can tell you that it is well worth the additional 15 minutes that it takes to go start to finish on it. It provides everyone with an authentic description of what it is like in the Olympic Village for an athlete - something which none of us will ever have a chance to experience.
The Business Insider version is a list of one line snippets that were pulled from the article and paired with random images. It took me about 30 seconds to go through the entire thing, told me literally nothing about the actual Olympic village itself and shed no insight on the great lengths that Alipur went through to acquire his information in the article.
So is Business Insider the problem? Or are the readers to blame? It is a little bit of both. On one hand, readers can demand some modicum of effective journalism rather than the laziness of turning an outstanding piece into a tiresome list. On the other hand, Business Insider should be pushing its journalists to produce content that is better than that.
Don't get me wrong, I am not condemning every story that appears on the website. I have seen some longform journalism on Business Insider that I truly enjoyed. I have also seen some great reporting on issues around business and technology. But articles like the one above cheapen the rest of those articles to the point that I frequently avoid reading Business Insider articles that people post on Twitter and Facebook.
Alipour leveraged an insane rolodex on contacts to provide this look into the Olympic Village. Business Insider took his work, gave him a one sentence credit at the top, turned it into a list, slapped a click-baiting title to it and called it complete. And that's where the issue comes in for me.
The next time you're reading an article like this on Business Insider or another similar website and they link back to the original piece - do yourself a favor and read the original. You'll be surprised by just how much you can learn and you just might put the pressure on Business Insider to do more reporting just like it.
For an example of Business Insider doing excellent reporting to show that they truly are capable of it, check out this article on the story behind AOL CEO Tim Cook firing an employee in front of the entire company - The Story Behind Why AOL CEO Tim Armstrong Fired An Employee In Front Of 1,000 Coworkers
I think that there is a certain amount of that that is healthy for readers in today's fast-paced world. Many would argue that we can only take in so many pieces of information in a given day, so it is better to get as many 1000 feet views of numerous topics than it is to develop an in-depth understanding of a few select issues.
But too much of that and we start to lose the significance of issues by glancing over some of the nuances. And that is where I start to get a little frustrated with a publication like Business Insider. In addition to its click-baiting (save that for another day), it would prefer a gatling gun style approach where it guns down issues left and right rather than focusing on some truly solid reporting on bigger issues. Ultimately it is the reader who loses out when this happens.
Take for instance an article that came out just before the Olympics - 16 Crazy Anecdotes About Sex In The Olympic Village. Never mind the fact that the title of the article would seem to suggest that these are direct anecdotes the journalist acquired, the entire article is simply a "listicle" of a truly excellent piece of journalism that Sam Alipour put together for ESPN two years ago just before the 2012 London Olympics - Will you still medal in the morning?
The ESPN article is long by our "this article seems interest...holy shit there's a squirrel!!" attention spans. But I have read this ESPN article before and I can tell you that it is well worth the additional 15 minutes that it takes to go start to finish on it. It provides everyone with an authentic description of what it is like in the Olympic Village for an athlete - something which none of us will ever have a chance to experience.
The Business Insider version is a list of one line snippets that were pulled from the article and paired with random images. It took me about 30 seconds to go through the entire thing, told me literally nothing about the actual Olympic village itself and shed no insight on the great lengths that Alipur went through to acquire his information in the article.
So is Business Insider the problem? Or are the readers to blame? It is a little bit of both. On one hand, readers can demand some modicum of effective journalism rather than the laziness of turning an outstanding piece into a tiresome list. On the other hand, Business Insider should be pushing its journalists to produce content that is better than that.
Don't get me wrong, I am not condemning every story that appears on the website. I have seen some longform journalism on Business Insider that I truly enjoyed. I have also seen some great reporting on issues around business and technology. But articles like the one above cheapen the rest of those articles to the point that I frequently avoid reading Business Insider articles that people post on Twitter and Facebook.
Alipour leveraged an insane rolodex on contacts to provide this look into the Olympic Village. Business Insider took his work, gave him a one sentence credit at the top, turned it into a list, slapped a click-baiting title to it and called it complete. And that's where the issue comes in for me.
The next time you're reading an article like this on Business Insider or another similar website and they link back to the original piece - do yourself a favor and read the original. You'll be surprised by just how much you can learn and you just might put the pressure on Business Insider to do more reporting just like it.
For an example of Business Insider doing excellent reporting to show that they truly are capable of it, check out this article on the story behind AOL CEO Tim Cook firing an employee in front of the entire company - The Story Behind Why AOL CEO Tim Armstrong Fired An Employee In Front Of 1,000 Coworkers
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