Press Conference Follies
Imagine that the San Antonio Spurs, who are 31-44 this season, just lost a game by 18 points. This is the Spurs' third straight losing season, and they have not advanced past the first round of the playoffs since 2017. Coach Gregg Popovich is being interviewed at the post-game press conference, and a local reporter who regularly covers the team asks him, "What changes going forward?"
What kind of answer would you expect from Popovich?
Suppose that Popovich replied, "Nothing man, nothing."
Then, our hypothetical reporter asked, "Why is that?"
Suppose that Popovich calmly replied, "Because it doesn't. What does it change? We've still got games to play. Other teams still have got games to play. We still have got to play teams that are above us in the Play-In. Don't really change much. What do you think should change?"
Then, our hypothetical reporter said, "Winning."
How would you expect Popovich to answer that retort? Suppose that Popovich rolled his eyes, and calmly said, "OK, that's obvious. And what do you think should change?"
Then, our hypothetical reporter said, "Winning. Winning games, playing hard. You asked a question, I gave you an answer."
Suppose that Popovich then got up to leave the press conference, and on his way out he said, "That's cool. Do you have the answer for winning?"
Then, our hypothetical reporter said, "I am not out there playing." The reporter then admitted that he did not have the answer for winning, and Popovich stated that he is just one member of the team, so he does not have the answer, either. Popovich then hugged the reporter and left the press conference.
Neither man raised his voice, or acted in a threatening manner. If you wrote the headline for an article describing the above interaction, would you describe it as "heated" or as an "altercation"?
The exchange described above happened last night, word for word--but the person being asked the questions was Russell Westbrook, not Gregg Popovich.
Unlike Popovich, Westbrook does not verbally attack reporters--but Westbrook does ask reporters to answer questions: that is Westbrook's way of showing that the question he was just asked was not particularly smart or insightful. The reporter interviewing Westbrook was Broderick Turner, and it is interesting how quickly Turner became defensive after Westbrook turned the spotlight on him. Turner proved that he asked a question that was so vague that any answer--or no answer--would have been appropriate. That was Westbrook's point, which is why he said, "That's obvious."
Was Turner asking Westbrook's opinion about roster composition, about coaching, about matchups, about effort level? We don't know, because Turner does not know. That is why all he could do after Westbrook asked him the same question was lamely answer, "Winning." Imagine if Westbrook had answered Turner's question by saying, "Winning."
It is fascinating to watch media members in action, to watch how they respond to being challenged, and then to watch how their fellow media members rush in to bash Westbrook while defending their own. Skip "Clueless" said that he would not have been able to contain himself if Westbrook had answered him that way. What would he have done? Would he have slapped Westbrook in the face? Would he have called Westbrook a "clever" name like "Westbrick"? I generally refrain from name-calling, but I make an exception for "Clueless" and for "Screamin' A" Smith, because those guys get paid a lot of money for making fun of other people's names so they more than deserve a dose of their own medicine. At least Westbrook is an all-time great at his chosen profession; "Clueless" and "Screamin' A" are buffoons.
Turner's question is far from the worst or dumbest one that I have heard in an NBA press conference, because I have had the misfortune of hearing many stupid questions, but Turner's question was lazy. What kind of article was he planning to write, based on the question he asked? It sounds like he just wanted some filler material. If he really wanted to know specifically what Westbrook thinks about the Lakers, then he would have asked a specific question. Instead, Turner asked a variation of the ubiquitous "Talk about" question; lazy reporters often say, "Talk about...," which of course is not even a question. "Talk about tonight's game" is what passes for journalism today, as is "What changes going forward?"
I don't know Turner, and from what I've seen of his work he is far from the NBA's worst beat reporter, but this notion that Westbrook somehow violated protocol or attacked Turner is ridiculous. Turner asked a lazy question, Westbrook turned the question around on Turner, and at the end the two men hugged it out. It takes a fevered--or devious--imagination to twist this into an excuse to attack Westbrook.
If you watch Westbrook's press conferences live and do not base your opinions on how other people describe his press conferences, you will see that Westbrook is proud, but he is also respectful when he is treated respectfully, and he refuses to throw his teammates or coaches under the bus. If a reporter asks Westbrook a lazy or stupid question, Westbrook does not play along and give a boring, cliche-filled answer; Westbrook challenges the reporter. Reporters do not like being challenged, but that does not mean that Westbrook is wrong to challenge them.
The notion that Westbrook cannot handle being in a major media market is ridiculous; he is handling it just fine, in the same way that he has always handled it. What Westbrook cannot handle is the way that General Manager/Coach/Team Captain/P.R. Director/Self-Proclaimed Greatest Player of All-Time LeBron James is throwing everyone else under the bus while he limps his way toward Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's all-time regular season scoring record. The other thing that Westbrook cannot handle is that most media members are committed to protecting James at all costs, which means that Westbrook has become the convenient scapegoat for the Lakers' disastrous season.
Labels: Broderick Turner, Gregg Popovich, L.A. Lakers, Russell Westbrook, San Antonio Spurs, Skip Bayless, Stephen A. Smith
posted by David Friedman @ 9:59 PM
Lakers Hit New Low With Overtime Loss to Rockets
The Houston Rockets have the worst record in the Western Conference and are just percentage points ahead of the Orlando Magic in the "race" to post the worst record in the entire NBA, but the L.A. Lakers lost to the Rockets in overtime on Wednesday night, 139-130. This loss will be tough to blame on everyone's favorite scapegoat, Russell Westbrook, but I have full faith and confidence that Skip "Clueless," "Screamin' A" Smith, and the rest of the village idiots will figure out how to trash Westbrook's name and Westbrook's game.
The Lakers' overall problem, as Charles Barkley has repeatedly noted, is that without Anthony Davis they are old, slow, and lack defensive presence in the paint. The Lakers sometimes play well in stretches, but they cannot sustain good play for much more than a quarter or two at a time. Another Laker problem is that LeBron James has entered "We're not winning anyway so let me pad my stats" mode. "Lakers Lose Despite LeBron James' Triple Double" is the headline that LeBron James wants to see after the Houston loss, and most media outlets will bow to the self-proclaimed King and comply. Let's look a little deeper at that 23 point, 14 rebound, 12 assist triple double: James shot 9-26 from the field (.346), hoisting five more field goal attempts than any other Laker, he had five of the Lakers' 16 turnovers, and he had the worst plus/minus number (-17) of any player on either team.
To top it off, despite jacking up more shots than any other player, James eschewed a potential game-winning layup at the end of regulation to pass to Carmelo Anthony, who missed a long jumper at the buzzer. When Ben Simmons passed to a teammate for a layup down the stretch of a playoff game last year, he was pilloried for being afraid to shoot, but there is no doubt that James passing up a layup for a long Anthony jumper will be portrayed as a heroic example of "making the right basketball play." Anthony shot 5-13 from the field, and his plus/minus number (-14) was second worst to James in this game, but we are supposed to pretend that the points the Lakers hemorrhaged with James and Anthony on the court do not matter, and we are supposed to pretend that a long jumper by an over the hill player is a better basketball play than a layup attempt by the player who cannot stop telling us that he is the greatest player of all-time.
After the game, Rockets rookie Jalen Green--who scored a career-high/game-high 32 points, including 10 in overtime--said, "Our game plan was just to attack Melo and find the mismatch on the floor. So when it came down to it, we were looking for Melo and I was attacking him every time."
Meanwhile, Russell Westbrook scored a team-high 30 points on 11-21 field goal shooting. He had eight rebounds, six assists, and just two turnovers in 40 minutes. His plus/minus number was -2, but it was in positive territory until the disastrous overtime that would not have been necessary if James had not been afraid to make a game-winning layup. The collective amnesia about Westbrook's prior accomplishments and the notion that he is washed up now are two of the most ridiculous basketball narratives that I have ever had the displeasure of reading and hearing. Hubie Brown is 88 years old and he does not do a full schedule of games, but he is still as sharp as ever, and it is fascinating to contrast his take on Westbrook with the dominant narratives. For example, during Sunday's broadcast of Milwaukee's 132-122 win over Phoenix, Brown noted that Giannis Antetokounmpo is on pace to become the first player
to average at least 25 ppg, at least 10 rpg, and at least 5 apg in four
different seasons. Brown mentioned that the record for such seasons is currently shared by
Oscar Robertson (three, 1961-63) and Antetokounmpo (if the NBA counted ABA numbers--which should be counted--then Julius Erving's 1974-76 seasons would be included). Brown added that Wilt Chamberlain (1964, 1966) and Russell
Westbrook (2017-18) are the only other players to accomplish this more than once, and Brown said of Westbrook, "A lot of people don't want to give him credit, but
that's the company he's in." It should be noted that reigning regular season MVP Nikola Jokic is set to join that company as he is on pace to have his second consecutive 25-10-5 season.
Westbrook is one of the greatest players of all-time, and he can still play at a high level. Just last May, the Washington Wizards put the ball in Westbrook's hands, and he set records while lifting them from oblivion into the playoffs. Will Lakers' General Manager/Coach/Media Relations Manager/Team Captain/Heir to the Regular Season Scoring Crown LeBron James play defense, display championship-level leadership, and let Westbrook run the offense to give the Lakers a fighting chance to salvage this train wreck of a season? Why should he? He is chasing the all-time scoring record, his media friends and allies will cover for him, and he knows that Westbrook--and Coach Frank Vogel--are set up to be the fall guys.
Labels: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Houston Rockets, Hubie Brown, Julius Erving, LeBron James, Oscar Robertson, Russell Westbrook, Skip Bayless, Stephen A. Smith, Wilt Chamberlain
posted by David Friedman @ 1:36 AM
Kwame Brown's Important Messages
Unless you are completely disconnected from any form of social media, you have seen, heard, or at least read about the videos that Kwame Brown has posted recently. Brown's first video included his reaction to an exchange on a recent episode of the "All the Smoke" podcast hosted by Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson. During an interview with Jeanie Buss, Buss discussed the Lakers' trade of Marc Gasol and Kwame Brown for Pau Gasol when Barnes and Jackson interrupted Buss to assert that there was only one player on the other side of the Pau Gasol trade, as if Brown has no value. Brown has been the butt of insults dating back to when he was the number one overall pick of the 2001 NBA Draft, and Brown fired back with an extended NSFW response.
It is easy to dismiss Brown as angry or say that he is ranting; that is often the reflexive reaction of people who do not want to address the substance of another person's message. In the initial video and then a steady stream of follow up videos, Brown has delivered several important messages, which I will paraphrase here in no particular order and without the NSFW language:
1) The very use of "All the Smoke" in the title of the podcast endorses both marijuana use and a confrontational approach to life; Barnes and Jackson pride themselves on being marijuana users who do not back down from conflict.
2) Barnes and Jackson are delivering negative and destructive messages to youth in general, and specifically minority youth. Brown urged Jackson to pull up his pants, act like an adult, and stop spending all night smoking weed and playing cards. It should be noted that this is not about whether or not marijuana use is legal (or should be legalized) in a particular jurisdiction, but rather about whether or not that lifestyle is the best lifestyle to promote to youth.
3) Jackson tries to portray himself as both a Black Lives Matter activist and a "gangsta," but Brown considers both stances to be inauthentic. Jackson's response on Instagram (since deleted), a veiled threat to meet Brown on the street, only adds to Brown's credibility while diminishing Jackson's credibility.
4) Brown questioned why certain people are given media platforms and asserted that to get a media platform you have to be willing to compromise your values and compromise truth. Stephen Jackson is best known for running into the stands to confront fans in Detroit, and he has revealed himself to be an antisemite who unapologetically endorses Louis Farrakhan, so it is certainly reasonable to ask why major media corporations are so eager to work with him, and why so many people are eager to associate themselves with him.
5) Brown noted that Jackson brags about how much money he spent on, shall we say, "entertaining" himself, and Brown asks why Jackson does not use his wealth and resources to help others.
6) Brown said that the only jokes people have about him are basketball jokes and he asked when people will get tired of that same old joke. He made over $60 million playing pro basketball, so he does not consider himself a bust in life; he owns property, grows his own food, and answers to no one.
Paraphrasing a line from the movie "Searching for Bobby Fischer," I would note that when Kwame Brown played in the NBA he was better at basketball than the vast majority of people will ever be at anything. How many people rank in the top 350-400 in the world at anything?
7) Brown said that his frequent critics Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless are losers who never accomplished anything, and Brown asked what qualifies them to talk about basketball. Brown said that if he is a "scrub" and a bust like they asserted then he should be called "Houdini" for fooling so many teams into paying him to play basketball, and he asked if being a number one draft pick who plays in the NBA for over a decade constitutes failure then what are we to think of the athletic careers of guys like Smith and Bayless?
8) Brown talked about how former player Jalen Rose tried to explain to Smith and Bayless that someone who plays for over a decade in the NBA is not a scrub and not a bust, but they just kept shouting Rose down.
9) Brown pointed out the NBA's double standard in punishing Lou Williams for violating COVID-19 protocols but not punishing LeBron James for violating the same protocols.
10) Brown praised his mother for her good advice, and he noted that he is a success story who overcame a difficult background. He is in no way a "scrub," and he contrasts his life path with what he termed the "degenerate" lifestyle afflicting minority communities, a lifestyle that he feels is encouraged and promoted by Barnes and Jackson.
I don't think that Brown is lashing out in anger. Ignore the NSFW language, and he has made a series of powerful statements. He is right about Barnes and Jackson not being good role models, and not being qualified for the huge media platform that they have been blessed to have. He is right that Smith and Bayless generally have no idea what they are talking about, and that they often take personal shots at people instead of just making a skill set analysis. Rose kept telling them that there is a difference between evaluating a person's basketball skills and just calling that person names, but Smith and Bayless disregarded what Rose said.
Brown is frustrated by the stupidity of so much that is said and depicted in the media. I share that frustration. Brown often predicts how his targets will respond to his videos, and he has been on target; he says that he is going to expose these people for who they really are, and to this point he has outsmarted them and made them look foolish. For instance, Brown has mentioned that people try to tear him down based on things that his family members did years ago, but Brown rightly noted that actions of family members when he was a young child have nothing to do with him and nothing to do with his message. Charlamagne tha God--and what person who has self-awareness gives himself such an outlandish name?--went on his podcast to talk about Brown's family history, and Brown just eviscerated the rapper, calling him out as a child rapist and asking why companies keep hiring him after the crime he committed. Charlamagne tha God, not quite understanding when to quit when he was only a little behind, had his lawyer send Brown a cease and desist letter stipulating that Charlamagne tha God pleaded guilty to contributing to the delinquency of the minor, not rape. Brown read the letter during his next video, said that he retracts calling Charlamagne tha God the "r word," and then expressed his opinion (in words that I will not repeat here) about the character of a person who contributes to the delinquency of a minor. Brown said that he does not care about the lawyer's letter, that he will keep expressing his opinion about Charlamagne tha God, and that he appreciates the lawyer informing him the exact name of the crime to which Charlamagne tha God admitted his guilt.
Brown was living in quiet obscurity until Barnes and Jackson decided to crack sophomoric jokes on their big-time show. They had a chance to reach out man to man to apologize but did not do so. Every target of Brown's videos went after Brown first, often in personal ways. They asked for what they are getting, and it seems like Brown is going to keep giving it to them.
Kwame Brown is speaking truths that many are afraid to speak, and it will be interesting to see what happens next.
Labels: Kwame Brown, Matt Barnes, Skip Bayless, Stephen A. Smith, Stephen Jackson
posted by David Friedman @ 9:52 PM
