Go Lakers (sort of)
This has been, and will probably continue to be, the most difficult NBA playoffs of my memory. What makes it tough is that my hometown team is going up against a series of teams that all have at least one player that I like. I can’t remember a time when this was actually true, and, combined with the fact that I don’t actually like the players on the Lakers, it’s making this a very difficult NBA postseason for me.
Let’s start with Yao Ming. I really like how he’s managed to be a success despite his unorthodox (for the NBA) upbringing. He’s freakishly tall, he was obviously bred specifically to play basketball (his dad and mom were pro basketballers in China) and he is the first Asian to really be a serious player in the NBA (sorry Wang Zhizhi). You’d think that this insulated life and his “fish-out-of-water” existence would mean that he would be socially awkward and aloof. Instead he’s totally likeable, has assimilated himself in the NBA, become a team leader on a team full of African-Americans and actually improved as a player over the course of his career. I really admire him because I know that I couldn’t have done half as well as that. I probably couldn’t do half a good a job if I was charged with leading a team of 5th graders. I felt terrible when Yao broke his foot, even though I knew that virtually guaranteed that the Lakers would beat the Rockets. That shows how much I like him.
Now we’ll talk about Ron Artest. If there was anything that the 2009 NBA playoffs did, it made me a Ron Artest fan. Before this year, my opinion of Ron Artest was the same as everyone else’s - I thought Ron Artest was a brainless thug. But now I think of him as actually a fairly thoughtful guy who simply took longer than usual to realize that playing professional basketball requires specific behavior that wasn’t fostered when he was growing up in a tough neighborhood. But what I realized is that he’s a genuine person, and that can’t be a bad thing (except when you go into the crowd to fight people). The icing on the cake for me, what made me a Ron Artest fan for life, was when he gave his heartfelt recounting of the story from his youth, where one of his teammates in a basketball game was stabbed to death (through his heart!) by an opposing player wielding a table leg. That killed me. I’m a huge fan Ron Artest fan now.
Now it’s Chauncey Billups. I actually have grown to like him, despite the fact that he spearheaded the Pistons when they destroyed the Lakers in the 2004 Finals (still one of the more painful sports moments for me). There’s nothing not to like about Chauncey Billups. He’s got good skills, is a great team leader, is super clutch, does tons for his community and he does this all while having the name Chauncey. That’s almost like a litmus test in life - whether you can be a great success in spite of your outdated name. He passed the test.
Then, even though the Lakers haven’t made the finals, I’ve got a problem liking both Dwight Howard and Lebron. Dwight Howard is also another genuinely likeable person who does cool things, like winning dunk contests while wearing Superman capes and putting stickers of his face high on the backboard.
As for Lebron, seriously, what’s not to like? He is a physically unbelievable player. He’s so fast and strong that he can make other NBA players defending him look like they’re in elementary school. The fact that he can embarrass these other gifted players is already crazy. Then throw in the fact that all of his teammates, themselves all macho members of the macho NBA, adore him and want to kill themselves for him. Then throw in the fact that he is FROM Ohio and is not only playing for his hometown team, he’s rescuing them from their sorry history (this is so huge and rare, in my opinion). Then throw in the fact that he’s funny as hell (check out his acting in the Lebrons Nike commercials and his dancing to Kid N Play in the State Farm insurance commercials). Then throw in the fact that he makes halfcourt shots from a sitting position. Then throw in the fact that his name is Lebron (what if his name was Michael James, it wouldn’t be as cool right? Wait a minute, there already IS a generic NBA player named Mike James!) and he nearly changed my stance against first names as last names. Then throw in the fact that he started his own company, hired his friends to run it, and together, they made it a success. Then throw in the fact that he seems to be a great dad (ok ok, an edited ESPN behind the scenes clip convinced me, but it looked very real). Lebron has it all. He’s one of the only athletes that made me wish I lived in an area where I could cheer for him. Knock on wood, if the Lakers play the Cavs and beat them, I’m going to feel so bad about Lebron losing. I could never say that about Larry Bird or Chauncey Billups.
As for the Lakers…I’m still cheering for them, but they’re not making it easy. Kobe’s a great player, but you know he’s a selfish person who really only cares about himself. You have to check out Kobe’s reaction to Andrew Bynum tearing his MCL during the season. Kobe falls, lands his teammate’s leg, tears his teammates’s MCL, and then, while his teammate is writhing in pain, Kobe reacts like someone just told him that his car was stolen. No sign of concern for his teammate. None. I tend to think that all superstars in any walk of life are selfish like this, but then the Lebrons of the world make you think otherwise. The rest of the Lakers are lame too. Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum are mentally weak. Derek Fisher is a good guy but he’s too old and can’t make baskets anymore. Jordan Farmar and Shannon Brown are inconsistent. Sasha Vujacic has to be considered one of the biggest jokes in all of professional sports for naming himself “the machine.” Together, they only seem to try hard on defense when they are winning, which, to me, is totally contrary to logic. It all kills me, and it hurts even more to think that, by winning, they will crush the dreams of teams and individuals who are more likable.
Other than that, Go Lakers!!!