Hmm. I guess we just have a difference of opinion. Abbott has made clear in the past (immedieately after the Celtics beat Portland, Abbott's favorite team) that he doesn't like KG's on-court persona. And I thought that showed clearly in the article, where 3 of the 4 bullet points that he uses were clearly negative (Circus sideshow, elitism, menace). Even the summary bullet point begins with two more negative-tilted anecdotes.
But I guess the real target of my ire isn't this particular article, it's that this (IMO) non-issue is getting SO MUCH RUN. I guess I'm just irritated to see it now as a lead basketball article on the most popular sports site in the world, which means that it'll continue to be a bigger deal than it should be.
Gotta disagree as well, i thought abbot, while clearly not a fan of any kind of trash talking (which he is upfront about) presented alot of points of view on KG pretty well.
Alot of the stuff he qoutes is negitive, but thats just him showing how KG is viewed. IT's more of a picture of KG from a bunch of prospectives than a negitive article.
Pierce one is great, although it's based on a false premise, that pre-2007 pierce was some kind of soft primadonna and "toughend up" last year. Pierce has always been tough, what was new was his attutude and trust in his teamates and his defense. I think mostly the author got the "now he's tough after being soft!" angle wrong, but the point that paul is now a more complete player right.
Again, it's about presentation. The title is "Kevin Garnett's Big Mouth"...negative.
3 of the 4 bullet points, including the first one (which sets the stage) and the last one (which leaves the final impression), were negative.
Abbott chooses which anecdotes to use, and he tilted it heavily towards the negative. He even stretched it to include quotes that weren't even about KG, as the very FIRST anecdote that he uses in the article (the QRich comment) was after a Celtics game that KG didn't even play in.
Abbott spun the big baby situation to the negative, not even posting the obvious other side that perhaps KG wasn't personally attacking Baby and that possibly what KG did was an example of good leadership. Whether Abbott agreed with that premise or not, it is a legit probability and if Abbott were really giving an unbiased accounting he'd have at least mentioned the other side.
I don't know. To me, that wasn't an unbiased accounting. But again, I posted this on here so that everyone could put their two cents in. It's ok if yours doesn't agree with mine.
I thought there was enough in a positive light. Even a lot of the unanimous negative opinions caveatted with a "but that's what makes him so good" type statement. I thought there was also plenty of positives... the trainer, the SLAM writer, the Basketball Academy guy... they all seemed to either not care or enjoy KG's persona. The way he ends it is a big reason why I'm fine with it:
The time Garnett's mouth really gets in the way? This expert says it's about the only thing that keeps Garnett from being the ideal role model for young players. He looks right at home in that adidas video, talking to teenaged players. Of course everyone from high school big men to NBA rookies should study all kinds of things about Garnett. How he defends the pick and roll (love that fearlessness containing faster guards!), how he fires up his teammates, how his motor runs high at every moment ... in a these and a thousand other elements of the game, he is essentially perfect. In how he talks, however, Garnett really is not to be emulated.
That's not the most important thing in the world. But it's not nothing, either. Like presidents, players tend to start worrying about their legacies at some point. And in that, having young players looking up to you might start to matter.
Through it all, I remain unconvinced that Garnett needs to verbally abuse people to play basketball well, just as I remain convinced that there is tremendous value, in all walks of life, in treating others with dignity.
Does that mean I'd be happy if Kevin Garnett toned it down?
Honestly? I can't say it's that clear cut to me.
Yes, he's rude. KG-5 is not PG-13. (I dare the NBA to mic that guy all night long.) The way he uses his voice is the kind of behavior that would get you kicked out of many pre-schools or fired from many workplaces. In almost any social setting, this would be considered somewhere between petulance and bullying.
That doesn't mean I want those social standards applied here. Sports are special. On the playing field, certain kinds of immoderate behavior are, thank goodness, not only welcome, but helpful. Kids who aren't supposed to jump on the couch, throw things, or run too hard in the living room are supposed to jump higher, throw things harder, and run faster in sports.
So all NBA players ought to have a certain leeway. And if Garnett goes even beyond that ... I wholly believe in the rule of doing things the right way, I also believe that sometimes, you break those rules, too.
There's a lot of positives in there, based on his own personal feelings... and I'm as big a KG fan as anyone, but I completely agree with Abbott that I don't think it is all necessary. I wouldn't mind if KG toned it down. I could care less from my stand point, but it's upsetting a lot of people and I don't want it to be part of his legacy.
