Must have flown away
March Madness is nearly upon us, you know that wonderful time of year when college basketball takes over the TV and dominates the sports talk radio airwaves. We hear about small schools we've seldom heard of getting their chance to shine on a national stage. We see star players come out to shine and better yet, players we've never heard of will sometimes shine too. There's a lot of hype surrounding a lot of things, some of it warranted and some of it not, but such is the nature of the beast.
Last season there was a lot of hype surrounding Adam Morrison, then a star of everyone's favorite mid-major feel good team Gonzaga. We heard about his passion, his energy, his diabetes, his long hair and "porn star" moustache (it wasn't and is still not a porn star stache, it was neither thick or bushy enough to qualify. It was rather wispy, something a 7th grader could grow, but that is neither here nor there) We heard about how he played X-Box from across the country with then Duke Star JJ Reddick. We heard more about him than we wished to hear (at least I did). To be honest though, it wasn't hard to deal with it, more annoying then anything else. But there was one tid-bit of info I couldn't stand. He reminded people of Larry Bird.
First off you have to understand how much I love Larry Bird. Despite the fact I only saw him towards the tale end of his career, he was beyond my favorite basketball player. He was the best player on my favorite team, it only seemed natural. While others my age fawned over Jordan and Pippen, I soaked up everything I could about Larry Bird. Bird was the be all and the end all for me. I understood that he was a unique player, the likes of which may not ever be seen again. So it always needles me a little when other players are compared to him or it is said they are reminded of Bird in some one else.
My issue isn't so much that another player might posses something of the same skill set that Bird did. My issue is everytime a player reminds someone of Bird is because that player is white. Everytime a white guy who is upwards of 6'8" who posesses an outside shot, he automatically reminds everyone Larry Bird and peolpe start comparing him to Larry Bird. Even if in no way shape or form the guy plays like Larry Bird did.
My question here is why does race seem to be the only qualifyer in this comparison. I've never heard anyone but white guys get compared to Larry Bird. Ever. There have to have been at least a couple of black players that posessed skill sets similar to Bird's, right? The odds would have to say so. But you've never heard of them, at least I haven't. Why is it in a sport that has some many things to evaluate, so many qualifiers to look at that things boil back down to race more often than not? (This is a large issue with the NBA in general, one I will rant about on a future date).
For me, it's just frustrating. There's a whole world of other things to look at in evaulating a player and breaking him down. Don't cop out and make race a factor. Don't evaluate a player's ability simply on the way he looks.
I can see how someone could fall into the Morrison - Bird trap. Both played at mid-major school (Gonzaga and Indiana St.) Both had mop-top hair doos and whispy moustaches. Both were slow footed, couldn't jump that high and had good range on their jumpers. That's where the comparison should end, period. Nothing else about how the two play the way of basketball is similar. Bird was an oustanding rebounder, Morrison has a ball fall into his hands after a missed shot once in a while. Bird was also an outstanding passer, he knew how to involve his teammates. Morrison passes only when he feel he doesn't have a shot available and that's not often. Bird was a decent individual defender (at least in the early stages of his career when he could still move before being hobbled by injury) and he was always a great team defender, smart and heady. Morrison would have a tough time defending a folding chair if a folding chair could shoot a basketball. Bird could create his own shot and play in the post if neccesary. Morrison can shoot the ball from the perimeter after running his defender off a screen or two.
I think you get my point (at least I hope you do by now). Aside from posessing good jumpers from the perimeter, there is nothing else as basketball players about the two that is remotely similar. So how can you compare the two in the same breath? It's simple, you can't or at least you shouldn't if you have any sense about basketball whatsoever.
Morrison wasn't the first guy mentioned in the breath of Bird. Similar comparisons arose when the likes of Keith Van Hon and Tom Gugliotta came along and there will be more comparisons down the road. I just hope that someday, somehow somewhere some one says stop. That the comparisons don't really match up oustide of skin color, but that's something for the future I guess not for now.
It's funny, now that Morrison is in the NBA we haven't heard nearly as much about him. Part of that of course is the fact that he plays in Charlotte, not exactly an NBA news hot bed. Part of it is that he's a rookie and unless they're truly lighting the league on fire you don't hear a ton about them. It's funny though because in what we do hear about him now, we don't hear anything about him being Bird like. One has to wonder where all that talk went. How could someone be mentioned in the same breath with one guy almost all the time and then suddenly all those comparisons disappear? Couldn't have been they were wrong to being with? Couldn't have been they were completely off base? Couldn't have been because you looked at one qualifier that really didn't matter in the grand scheme of things, could it?
The point I'm trying to make is this I guess. Dont' pigeon hole things. Don't make a comparison that is lazy and wrong because it's easy to do. Be thorough in what you do. And last but not least, don't assume to things are similar just because they look the same.
As for all that talk about Bird and Morrison being comperable, who knows where it went. Maybe it just all flew away.
Last season there was a lot of hype surrounding Adam Morrison, then a star of everyone's favorite mid-major feel good team Gonzaga. We heard about his passion, his energy, his diabetes, his long hair and "porn star" moustache (it wasn't and is still not a porn star stache, it was neither thick or bushy enough to qualify. It was rather wispy, something a 7th grader could grow, but that is neither here nor there) We heard about how he played X-Box from across the country with then Duke Star JJ Reddick. We heard more about him than we wished to hear (at least I did). To be honest though, it wasn't hard to deal with it, more annoying then anything else. But there was one tid-bit of info I couldn't stand. He reminded people of Larry Bird.
First off you have to understand how much I love Larry Bird. Despite the fact I only saw him towards the tale end of his career, he was beyond my favorite basketball player. He was the best player on my favorite team, it only seemed natural. While others my age fawned over Jordan and Pippen, I soaked up everything I could about Larry Bird. Bird was the be all and the end all for me. I understood that he was a unique player, the likes of which may not ever be seen again. So it always needles me a little when other players are compared to him or it is said they are reminded of Bird in some one else.
My issue isn't so much that another player might posses something of the same skill set that Bird did. My issue is everytime a player reminds someone of Bird is because that player is white. Everytime a white guy who is upwards of 6'8" who posesses an outside shot, he automatically reminds everyone Larry Bird and peolpe start comparing him to Larry Bird. Even if in no way shape or form the guy plays like Larry Bird did.
My question here is why does race seem to be the only qualifyer in this comparison. I've never heard anyone but white guys get compared to Larry Bird. Ever. There have to have been at least a couple of black players that posessed skill sets similar to Bird's, right? The odds would have to say so. But you've never heard of them, at least I haven't. Why is it in a sport that has some many things to evaluate, so many qualifiers to look at that things boil back down to race more often than not? (This is a large issue with the NBA in general, one I will rant about on a future date).
For me, it's just frustrating. There's a whole world of other things to look at in evaulating a player and breaking him down. Don't cop out and make race a factor. Don't evaluate a player's ability simply on the way he looks.
I can see how someone could fall into the Morrison - Bird trap. Both played at mid-major school (Gonzaga and Indiana St.) Both had mop-top hair doos and whispy moustaches. Both were slow footed, couldn't jump that high and had good range on their jumpers. That's where the comparison should end, period. Nothing else about how the two play the way of basketball is similar. Bird was an oustanding rebounder, Morrison has a ball fall into his hands after a missed shot once in a while. Bird was also an outstanding passer, he knew how to involve his teammates. Morrison passes only when he feel he doesn't have a shot available and that's not often. Bird was a decent individual defender (at least in the early stages of his career when he could still move before being hobbled by injury) and he was always a great team defender, smart and heady. Morrison would have a tough time defending a folding chair if a folding chair could shoot a basketball. Bird could create his own shot and play in the post if neccesary. Morrison can shoot the ball from the perimeter after running his defender off a screen or two.
I think you get my point (at least I hope you do by now). Aside from posessing good jumpers from the perimeter, there is nothing else as basketball players about the two that is remotely similar. So how can you compare the two in the same breath? It's simple, you can't or at least you shouldn't if you have any sense about basketball whatsoever.
Morrison wasn't the first guy mentioned in the breath of Bird. Similar comparisons arose when the likes of Keith Van Hon and Tom Gugliotta came along and there will be more comparisons down the road. I just hope that someday, somehow somewhere some one says stop. That the comparisons don't really match up oustide of skin color, but that's something for the future I guess not for now.
It's funny, now that Morrison is in the NBA we haven't heard nearly as much about him. Part of that of course is the fact that he plays in Charlotte, not exactly an NBA news hot bed. Part of it is that he's a rookie and unless they're truly lighting the league on fire you don't hear a ton about them. It's funny though because in what we do hear about him now, we don't hear anything about him being Bird like. One has to wonder where all that talk went. How could someone be mentioned in the same breath with one guy almost all the time and then suddenly all those comparisons disappear? Couldn't have been they were wrong to being with? Couldn't have been they were completely off base? Couldn't have been because you looked at one qualifier that really didn't matter in the grand scheme of things, could it?
The point I'm trying to make is this I guess. Dont' pigeon hole things. Don't make a comparison that is lazy and wrong because it's easy to do. Be thorough in what you do. And last but not least, don't assume to things are similar just because they look the same.
As for all that talk about Bird and Morrison being comperable, who knows where it went. Maybe it just all flew away.
posted by MC at 3:42 PM
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