Re: Tarde Mercer for Olawakandi?

[rwbrooks@teleport.com]

:     Another gratuitous comment re Walker's maturity or lack thereof.  At the
: risk of treading on dangerous waters, I think this goes to our own
: personalities.  Some prefer quiet, non-demonstrative stars, like McHale or
: Grant Hill.  Others prefer the in-your-face stylings of a Barkley or Iverson.
: Is Walker immature?  Hell, he's 22.  Yes, he's immature.  I just hope he's
: focused.  If he wins, he can wiggle all he wants.  If he loses, I don't care
: if he rescues kittens.

Well, for me the question of Walker's on-court demeanor is less about my
personality, and more about how the refs view him with relation to the
sucess of the team.  I originally hated The Wiggle because it simply added
more fuel to the fire - the officials were already predisposed to the
quick T with Antoine because of his constant complaining (warranted or
not).  Adding what could easily be perceived as showboating to that is a
good mixture for technicals (leading to ejections) and makes it less
likely that he'd get the benefit of the doubt on foul calls.  All this
adds up to some level of restricting of what he can do on the court, and
the less effective Walker is, the more the team suffers.  Having said all
that, he seems to have a much better relationship with the refs in the
early going this season, so let him wiggle away.

- Rob