In light of
the Eagles' shocking signing of Michael Vick, I thought I'd spend this glorious Friday talking about something that's hardly ever mentioned.
Forget about talent, for a minute. Forget about contender or not. Forget about the luxury tax. Forget about the youth movement. Clear your mind of all the superfluous noise and think about the roster the Sixers have cobbled together for a second. Is there a single guy on the team who you have any kind of philosophical problem rooting for?
The answer should be no. Sam Dalembert says and does silly things sometimes, but when it comes right down to it, he hasn't caused a lick of trouble off the court, in fact, he does
quite a bit of charity work.
While it may not put bottoms in the seats, the Sixers have really done an excellent job of signing and drafting quality character guys in a time when those guys seem to be the exception rather than the rule. We all want to root for a winner, and I do believe this team is headed in that direction, but it's awfully nice to have a group of good guys to root for as well. At least when I'm watching a basketball game with my son I won't have to explain things like dog fighting, vehicular manslaughter, steroids nor accidental discharges of firearms to him.
I don't have a philosophical problem with rooting for any of the Sixers, but then again, there's not a single Sixer I find likable or interesting enough to root for. I think most people would tell you that they'd rather root for Iverson than Iguodala even though Iverson is widely known to be an ass and was accused of chasing his half-naked wife out of his house with a gun and Iguodala's never done anything of the kind. For that matter, I think there are a lot of NBA fans who really loved the old Jail Blazers teams and find today's Blazers kind of boring.
Interesting, fine whatever, I get that statement I suppose, but likable? What about any of these guys isn't likable? Are they too bland for you, on and off the court? Don't get that.
And you're probably right about the Blazers, and that's kind of sad.
For the most part, I don't care what guys do off the court, I root for or against guys based pretty much on who they play for. I do think it's worth at least a little acknowledgment that the Sixers have put together a group of stand-up citizens. I'm not saying they get a free pass for anything because of it, but that fact alone is worth noting.
Well, they're nice guys; Thad's sort of endearing, or least he was his rookie year when he busted his ass. But I don't particularly care for or like any of them. It's not that they're too bland off the court - well, it's not at all that they'd somehow be more interesting if they misbehaved off the court. Mutombo was a great guy and a lot of fun to root for. But he had a funny personality. These guys don't have much personality, or if they do they're mildly annoying (Lou, Sam). As for the Blazers, I draw the line at guys like Qyntel Woods, but Rasheed, Bonzi, Stoudamire, Ruben Patterson were hard-edged, fun players to watch, and for the most part their trangressions weren't so great that it felt too icky to root for them in the playoffs.
I don't care if a guy is a bad ass or egotistical. But I tend to draw the line at abuse. So guys like Patterson, a convicted rapist, I feel uncomfortable rooting for. Same for Big Dog and Brett Myers (who both beat their wives.) Vick falls in this group. More for the abuse of animals than just being involve in dog fights (although they are obviously connected.)
I don't have a problem with these guys paying for what they did and then working again. Just don't feel comfortable rooting for them when they play on teams I follow.
I think Vick is going to be a great fit for the Eagles. The Eagles love killers. They had Stalworth, he killed people. They had TO, he killed team chemistry. They have Reid, he kills buffets. They have McNab, he kills Super Bowl drives. And now they have Vick, who kills dogs and blunts.
How dare you sully my name (and spell it wrong to boot)! You still have that quick wit, though.
I spelled Stallworth's name wrong too. Don't feel bad. Now run to the chopper!!!
What happened to you, Brandon? You used to be someone I could trust.
i have a philosophical problem rooting for lou williams and willie green
I hate Sammy. Always have always will. But at least he's a decent person, but the fact that he never smiles kinda is weird.
Man, it really is the middle of August isn't it?
It has went from Sixers team discussions to character judgment and assasinations.
Oh, Oct. 28th, where art thou? Spare this blog from the drivel that has been and may be spewed here today.
"We judge ourselves by our morals. Others, by their actions."
I have no problem with the eagles signing vick, I don't think it matters cause Vick isn't a good quarterback for the eagles system - i mean Donovan McNabb doesn't run any more now does he and Vick is a godawful inaccurate passer...so unless he's installed in the wildcat he's just McNabb insurance now that Kolb went down - and if McNabb goes down, the eagles season is screwed no matter who the back up is.
I don't hate Sam Dalembert the person, I hate sam dalember the basketball player, because he hasn't gotten better, he shows no dedication to his chosen profession - and yes his charity work is great - but so what - I'm a fan of a sports team, all I really care about is how the players perform and Sams performance has never really impressed me with the hype he has received from the various Sammites out there on the web.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gc72CaMsqQY
gotta love chief blocka.
genius.
Amazing! I only wish that Iggy had his own verse.
Why does Mo Williams have six fingers?!
mo cheeks becomes assistant coach on thunder (espn).
Good for Mo. I always thought he was a good assistant under Brown.