Jersey Red

[D Parker <danp@town.ipswich.ma.us>]

> As stands right now, Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce will play for
> this team and I'm really happy about that. Mark my words, you will rue
> the day that you booed Walker.

I doubt it.

> Speaking of booing, how refreshing was to see and hear the Portland
> Trail Blazer fans give their team a thunderous standing ovation after
> being ousted by San Antonio in four games.

If the Trailblazers were playing to the best of their ability but were
simply beat by a better team (as seems to be the case) then that is indeed
an appropriate thing to do.

Tell me, Jersey Red, was Boston playing to it's full potential in March?
I think it would be complimentary to say they were dogging it.  They
looked like they wanted the season to be over *immediately*, and weren't
even going through the motions.  Heck, a team going through the motions
wouldn't have given up all the easy baskets the Celtics did.

> It moved announcer Bob Costas...

A recognized idiot by knowledgable basketball fans.

> ...to call them some of the classiest fans in basketball.

Oh, yeah.  Browbeating the reporters that covered the team because they
would occassionally point out that some of the Trailblazers
extra-curricular activities weren't entirely legal is real classy.

> The fans in Boston are a disgrace. You boo the Sox. You boo the
> Bruins. You boo the Celts. You boo the Patriots.

Thanks for the sweeping generalizations.  I didn't boo anyone, but I
understand why others did.

Why are people like Jersey Red so out of touch with why fans boo their
teams?  I can understand the players being a little spacey -- they've
hardly lived normal lives since their basketball talent emerged.  Why
can't a guy like Jersey Red appreciate that someone making $30,000 a year
might be a bit resentful to see millionaires acting like zombies on the
basketball court, especally since they've had their standards set high by
great players of the past?

What isn't mentioned is how long the fans stomached Walker's 3-15 shooting
nights without a single boo.  I really like how when Walker started
showing signs of life, Rick Pitino asked the fans to cut him a break.
Hey Rick, when he shows us he's willing to work for more than a week at a
time, we'll cut him some slack.  An energetic week or two doesn't
instantly make up for two months of bad basketball.

Dan

P.S.  I generally like Walker and I'm not singling him out for the team's
fortunes this past year.  Anderson and Mercer are at least equally to
blame.