NBA Season 2011-12 Thread

[pk500]

I wonder how so many people missed this or thought this was okay. Or did some a-hole who hated Lin get to do the graphic. Mind-boggling in the age of over sensitivity that stuff like this gets missed.

Paul, you know the inside of sports organizations and media better than anyone, how does this get through in this age?

The guy that was fired was 28, and honestly, I believe it was a mistake. It's an old ethnic slur and I could see someone not knowing it. I can't see someone knowingly doing this unless they are trying to get fired.

It should have been caught, but I really don't think it was intentional. On top of that, copy editing is fast becoming a lost art in the age of insta-journalism.

Exactly, on all counts.

We’re reaching a cultural intersection in the United States at which there are two distinct groups: Those raised with political correctness and those raised without it. It’s possible that a kid 30 or younger didn’t even know the derogatory meaning of the word “chink” because he or she never heard it. Those are the politically correct times in which we live. But the paymasters and bosses at ESPN grew up in my era, when words like that were used all the time. And they’re the ones facing pressure from advertisers to fix this blight.

I was sad to see ESPN suspend announcer Max Bretos for 30 days for using the “chink in the armor” phrase on ESPNEWS when conducting an interview with an NBA analyst about Lin. Max is a good announcer – I LOVED him on Fox Soccer Channel throughout the 2000s. Plus his wife is Asian, for Christ’s sake! There’s no way he was using “chink” as a slur. It was a mental slip.

That mistake warranted punishment. But 30 days? That’s ridiculous. Overkill.

Sadly, we live in a world in which mistakes immediately are judged as veiled or direct slurs. Plus, how the hell is society supposed to eliminate racism when it can't even discuss race -- or make a mistake with a racial term -- without being accused of overt racism?

Norman Lear, where are you when we need you?

[pk500]

Hmm, starting to think the Warriors would be better off with Lin than Curry. Probably better off than with Monta Ellis, given Ellis' big contract.

Curry is a much better shooter but Lin is more physical and gritty, able to get to the hole to score or draw defenders and able to dish the ball out.

Lin has been great, but his turnover numbers are appalling. If you compare their performance since Lin started, Lin has slightly more points and assists, but his TOs are double Curry's.

Lin also is playing 42 to 45 minutes per game, and the Knicks have scrapped nearly all of their set and isolation plays for motion and pick-and-roll plays that run through Lin. I'll bet the ball is in Lin's hands more than any point guard in the league except for Rose.

That's a recipe for turnovers for nearly any PG in the NBA.

[dbdynsty25]

Are you guys really saying that someone under 30 might not know what the term chink means? That's ridiculous and you should just be fired for stupidity if you don't know what that means. There is no way the guy didn't know what he was doing and he was probably trying to show off or get a laugh, not knowing the sensitivity of the whole thing and didn't know it would blow up. No way he didn't know what chink meant. That's just laughable.

[Rodster]

Like PK said Lin's TO ratio is indicative of his time on the court. The kid is playing his ass off and once Coach D takes him off the court the Knicks look totally different. So play he must and until the Knicks find a suitable backup PG that plays Lin's style he'll keep getting HUGE minutes each game.

[dbdynsty25]

Lin also is playing 42 to 45 minutes per game, and the Knicks have scrapped nearly all of their set and isolation plays for motion and pick-and-roll plays that run through Lin. I'll bet the ball is in Lin's hands more than any point guard in the league except for Rose.

That's a recipe for turnovers for nearly any PG in the NBA.

And Nash (lick lick slobber slobber). But remember, all those years that Nash led the league in assists (and this year), he was also near the top in Turnovers. It's a product of D'Antoni's system and I wouldn't worry about turnovers at all with Lin. He's young, he'll get better at making the right pass at the right time. It comes with experience. TO's are not that big of a deal when you average over 10 assists a game. When Lin gets to that point, he'll still average the TO's. You don't want your PG to lose his aggressiveness because then he becomes tentative in throwing passes and ruins a lot of easy hoops. The pundits crushing his turnover ratio are idiots IMO.

[dbdynsty25]

Like PK said Lin's TO ratio is indicative of his time on the court. The kid is playing his ass off and once Coach D takes him off the court the Knicks look totally different. So play he must and until the Knicks find a suitable backup PG that plays Lin's style he'll keep getting HUGE minutes each game.

Ah the dreaded must find a suitable backup so the team doesn't look different w/ the backup in instead of the starter. Phoenix has been trying since 2004. It hasn't happened yet. It's almost impossible to do unless the Knicks actually sign Nash to come off the bench next year which isn't happening since Nash is still a starter (at least for a couple more years).

[pk500]

Are you guys really saying that someone under 30 might not know what the term chink means? That's ridiculous and you should just be fired for stupidity if you don't know what that means. There is no way the guy didn't know what he was doing and he was probably trying to show off or get a laugh, not knowing the sensitivity of the whole thing and didn't know it would blow up. No way he didn't know what chink meant. That's just laughable.

It's possible, but unlikely, if you grew up in an area without a lot of Asians. You grew up in Southern California, one of the biggest melting pots in America. Conversely, my wife never met a black person until she went to college. She grew up in a tiny rural farm town.

More likely is that this editor possibly didn't hear or use the term used much growing up and didn't think twice about any possible racial negative stereotype.

My oldest child is 13. I hear and see the descriptive terms that she and her friends use, and they sound nothing like what we said as kids 30 years ago. They're far more tame. I just asked her if she or her friends -- male and female -- ever used the word "chink" to describe an Asian in private. Her response: "No. We call them Asians."

When I was 13, 33 years ago, we called Asian kids "chinks" all the time. Never to their face, but when referring to them in private. EVERYBODY did. It was just a product of the times. We now know it was wrong. But it was accepted among groups of kids back then.

DB, you may dismiss the generational divide between those who grew up with PC and those who didn't. But it's real, man. VERY real.

[Rodster]

Like PK said Lin's TO ratio is indicative of his time on the court. The kid is playing his ass off and once Coach D takes him off the court the Knicks look totally different. So play he must and until the Knicks find a suitable backup PG that plays Lin's style he'll keep getting HUGE minutes each game.

Ah the dreaded must find a suitable backup so the team doesn't look different w/ the backup in instead of the starter. Phoenix has been trying since 2004. It hasn't happened yet. It's almost impossible to do unless the Knicks actually sign Nash to come off the bench next year which isn't happening since Nash is still a starter (at least for a couple more years).

The draft is a teams best bet. Norris Cole for the Heat has done a nice job filling in for D-Wade.

[pk500]

Like PK said Lin's TO ratio is indicative of his time on the court. The kid is playing his ass off and once Coach D takes him off the court the Knicks look totally different. So play he must and until the Knicks find a suitable backup PG that plays Lin's style he'll keep getting HUGE minutes each game.

Ah the dreaded must find a suitable backup so the team doesn't look different w/ the backup in instead of the starter. Phoenix has been trying since 2004. It hasn't happened yet. It's almost impossible to do unless the Knicks actually sign Nash to come off the bench next year which isn't happening since Nash is still a starter (at least for a couple more years).

The team may look very different tonight with Melo on the floor, so it's a bit early yet to know what kind of backup the Knicks need to keep Lin's mojo going when he's on the bench.

[Brando70]

Lin also is playing 42 to 45 minutes per game, and the Knicks have scrapped nearly all of their set and isolation plays for motion and pick-and-roll plays that run through Lin. I'll bet the ball is in Lin's hands more than any point guard in the league except for Rose.

That's a recipe for turnovers for nearly any PG in the NBA.

And Nash (lick lick slobber slobber). But remember, all those years that Nash led the league in assists (and this year), he was also near the top in Turnovers. It's a product of D'Antoni's system and I wouldn't worry about turnovers at all with Lin. He's young, he'll get better at making the right pass at the right time. It comes with experience. TO's are not that big of a deal when you average over 10 assists a game. When Lin gets to that point, he'll still average the TO's. You don't want your PG to lose his aggressiveness because then he becomes tentative in throwing passes and ruins a lot of easy hoops. The pundits crushing his turnover ratio are idiots IMO.

Yeah, but he never cracked the 4/game barrier.

I like Lin a lot and think he's very exciting to watch. But he's averaging almost 6 TOs per game since starting. I'm just saying that's going to have to go down if the Knicks want to make a playoff run. It probably will as he gets more experience.

[pk500]

Lin also is playing 42 to 45 minutes per game, and the Knicks have scrapped nearly all of their set and isolation plays for motion and pick-and-roll plays that run through Lin. I'll bet the ball is in Lin's hands more than any point guard in the league except for Rose.

That's a recipe for turnovers for nearly any PG in the NBA.

And Nash (lick lick slobber slobber). But remember, all those years that Nash led the league in assists (and this year), he was also near the top in Turnovers. It's a product of D'Antoni's system and I wouldn't worry about turnovers at all with Lin. He's young, he'll get better at making the right pass at the right time. It comes with experience. TO's are not that big of a deal when you average over 10 assists a game. When Lin gets to that point, he'll still average the TO's. You don't want your PG to lose his aggressiveness because then he becomes tentative in throwing passes and ruins a lot of easy hoops. The pundits crushing his turnover ratio are idiots IMO.

So you're in with Lin? You believe?

[pk500]

I like Lin a lot and think he's very exciting to watch. But he's averaging almost 6 TOs per game since starting. I'm just saying that's going to have to go down if the Knicks want to make a playoff run. It probably will as he gets more experience.

And if the Doan's Pills work for Davis. That will give Lin more rest.

Lin faces more pressure than just that of hype and expectation. It's startling to see how much the Knicks' offense has changed since his emergence. The Knicks had no functional point guard before Lin. The offense was a jumbled mess, with the ball running through a variety of ill-suited hands.

Now that D'Antoni has found a point guard who can run his system, he has handed him the keys to the car and hidden or destroyed all copies. It's stunning how a guy who was on the verge of being cut from his third NBA team this season just two weeks ago is the absolute fulcrum of the offense.

It really hit me yesterday while watching the game against the Mavs. Every Knicks' player -- even Shumpert and Fields -- looked for Lin almost immediately when they got a rebound. The team is almost hardwired now to think: "F*ck, I have the ball in our backcourt. I need to get the ball to Jeremy NOW!"

Even Felton and Billups didn't exert this kind of control over the Knicks' offense under D'Antoni last season. But that all could change when the Human Motion Offense Brake -- Carmelo -- returns to the lineup tonight.

[wco81]

Curry had a turnover in a crucial possession down the stretch against at the last game at Memphis, where the Warriors lost by a point. He dribbled to the right sideline, didn't negotiate a pick well and then got hung up in the air between two defenders. They just took the ball from him.

Unfortunately, this kind of thing is not atypical.

Lin at least is going to the hole with more authority. Curry has to go with tear drops and high bank shots.

If Lin did this with the Warriors, he would not be getting this kind of publicity and as an UDFA, an extension for him would be much cheaper than it would be for Curry, who was a lottery pick.


People have been comparing him to Nash, because of D'Antoni and the potential for easy pick and roll points with Stoudemire. But I see a bit of Deron Williams in him, as a physical PG who can get to the hole. He's got to watch the wear and injury potential though. He may be finishing enough inside but he's bumping up against big bodies more often.

[Rodster]

that all could change when the Human Motion Offense Brake -- Carmelo -- returns to the lineup tonight.

If it does the Knicks should seriously consider trading or moving him if possible. The Knicks have a nice situation where the PG is making a big difference and the team is playing with camaraderie.

I'm interested to see how Lin matches up against the physical Heat this Thurs.

[pk500]

that all could change when the Human Motion Offense Brake -- Carmelo -- returns to the lineup tonight.

If it does the Knicks should seriously consider trading or moving him if possible.

Owner Dolan's ego won't allow this. He gave away quite a few assets to get Carmelo. I think Dolan -- one of the biggest idiots in the league -- would sacrifice D'Antoni before admitting he made a mistake at judging the poor chemistry created by the arrival of Carmelo.

[Rodster]

that all could change when the Human Motion Offense Brake -- Carmelo -- returns to the lineup tonight.

If it does the Knicks should seriously consider trading or moving him if possible.

Owner Dolan's ego won't allow this. He gave away quite a few assets to get Carmelo. I think Dolan -- one of the biggest idiots in the league -- would sacrifice D'Antoni before admitting he made a mistake at judging the poor chemistry created by the arrival of Carmelo.

That's a shame. So he'll take Melo on the court regardless of what he does to the team over a packed house with screaming fans and the ultimate Knicks fan, Spike Lee? Yeah if he chooses Melo then he is a pretty dumb owner.

[Brando70]

I'm interested to see how Lin matches up against the physical Heat this Thurs.

I'm interested to see what happens after the break, too. Knicks have a really tough post All-Star schedule.

[Rodster]

I'm interested to see how Lin matches up against the physical Heat this Thurs.

I'm interested to see what happens after the break, too. Knicks have a really tough post All-Star schedule.

Someone previously said that Lin likes to play physical. I see how that could become a problem for him in the long run. He's played what 8-9 games? If you're LeBron James yeah you can get away with being physical but eventually it wears a player down and injury's happen. D-Wade is a freak and at 30 he's starting to slowdown with injury's.

He's going to have to learn how to play smart going to the rack or he won't last a season.

[pk500]

The Lin-ESPN episode once again proves the only truth about political correctness: It breeds dishonesty.

ESPN fired an editor and suspended an anchor over what were almost certainly mistakes, not intended slights. Yet ESPN headquarters at the celebrated Bristol campus remain as much of a bastion of overt male chauvinism and sexism as any all-male country club in America.

[Aristo]

Well for the over sensitive types ESPN fired a bunch of people. And the FOX Sports remark was equally as bad. After a Knicks win there was a comment that some lucky lady was going to enjoy a couple of inches of pain.

It wasn't f***in funny when it was said before. And it is even more offensive seeing you repeat it with a freaking laughing smiley.

You are pathetic.

Well I found it f***in funny and I ain't into the political correctness bullshit so f*** you, your a p***y.

That's priceless. Most people don't latch on political incorrectness just to be a racist d***** bag. But hey, I hear ESPN may be in the market for an asshole now.

[Danimal]

Where is the condemnation in this thread for Mayweather and his comments?

Is Mayweather a racist?

Just want to know how easily we're throwing around the race card. Considering I saw many people defending his comments as not racist but in fact true, I want to know how people stand on that.

As for my thoughts on the matter. Chink in the armor is an actual saying that doesn't have anything to do with Asian people. While anyone with half a brain would of said "We can't run that" and went with something like "Bump in the Road?" You'll have a hard time convincing me that they determined that quickly the headline was put up with harmful intent. The only time people get fired that fast is when a company is in CYA mode. To me all it does is make them look worse by firing someone that fast, but I guess the only way to appease certain groups now is by firing someone.

So while I can see how people would be upset with the headline and I don't think it is funny. I find the whole make a scapegoat out of one person alarming because it could easily happen to anyone of us. Now if the guy had all sorts of deragatory s*** spread about his office then I obviously retract my position.

[Aristo]

After a Knicks win there was a comment that some lucky lady was going to enjoy a couple of inches of pain.

That's racist. That's what I called pathetic.

[ScoopBrady]

Welcome back, D Rose!

[Lancer]

Mayweather is just a idiot. Didn't he say something racist too when comparing MMA and Boxing a few years back. When it comes to some of these athletes who don't have an IQ above a sewer rat, it shouldn't even be printed. Sort like Tim Hardaway's anti-gay comments some years back. At the time I was like ya he's a moron for spewing hate, but who the F is Tim hardaway. Just another dumb athelete. No need to get all riled up because of some idiot. They're both wrong in what they said, and it's good to be called out, but considering the intellect factor of a guy like Mayweather, really who cares what comes out of his mouth.

As for the Fox Sports columnist, he should have been fired. I know he apologized, but it didnt sound too sincere. I was just disappointed that nobody from the African American community came out and condemned him, like say Al Sharpton. Maybe they did, and I haven't seen it reported. But that would have helped lower the tensions alot.

[Lancer]

After a Knicks win there was a comment that some lucky lady was going to enjoy a couple of inches of pain.

That's racist. That's what I called pathetic.

Ya that was the quote of what the Fox Sports columnist said.