According to ESPN sources, Andrew Bynum to sign with Pacers

[BballTim]

He's a force in the middle and about as tough as you'll find in the NBA.

Being a thug doesn't mean you're tough.

Maybe cool it on the use of 'thug' to describe a black man..

Maybe cool it with reading racism into arguments where there isn't any. It says a lot about your own prejudices.

No, it says a lot about your ignorance to the power of language in shaping a human being's thoughts. Like how you could have said punk, or jerk, or child, but chose thug. This exact issue has actually come up recently...

  Thug's a pretty common term to use for play like Bynum's. It's used all the time in soccer. I'd use the same term about Wade btw. As for Bynum, check out some of his "greatest hits", where he deliberately takes out players who are in the air and in defenseless positions. Child, jerk or punk don't really fit as descriptions of that kind of behavior.

exactly. Plenty of NHL players have been described as thugs, yet none would be described as gangstas

Because, with some exceptions, they're white

  To be clear, though, Roy didn't call Bynum, a gangsta, he called him a thug, which you seem to realize is a term that's applied equally to different races.

[jojowhite10]

He's a force in the middle and about as tough as you'll find in the NBA.

Being a thug doesn't mean you're tough.

Maybe cool it on the use of 'thug' to describe a black man..

Maybe cool it with reading racism into arguments where there isn't any. It says a lot about your own prejudices.

No, it says a lot about your ignorance to the power of language in shaping a human being's thoughts. Like how you could have said punk, or jerk, or child, but chose thug. This exact issue has actually come up recently...

  Thug's a pretty common term to use for play like Bynum's. It's used all the time in soccer. I'd use the same term about Wade btw. As for Bynum, check out some of his "greatest hits", where he deliberately takes out players who are in the air and in defenseless positions. Child, jerk or punk don't really fit as descriptions of that kind of behavior.

exactly. Plenty of NHL players have been described as thugs, yet none would be described as gangstas

Because, with some exceptions, they're white

  To be clear, though, Roy didn't call Bynum, a gangsta, he called him a thug, which you seem to realize is a term that's applied equally to different races.

I am saying if you call a black man a thug it means something different than calling a white man a thug.

Just like if you called me 'boy', it would mean something different to a dude of another complexion.

[sed522002]

He's a force in the middle and about as tough as you'll find in the NBA.

Being a thug doesn't mean you're tough.

Maybe cool it on the use of 'thug' to describe a black man..

Maybe cool it with reading racism into arguments where there isn't any. It says a lot about your own prejudices.

No, it says a lot about your ignorance to the power of language in shaping a human being's thoughts. Like how you could have said punk, or jerk, or child, but chose thug. This exact issue has actually come up recently...

  Thug's a pretty common term to use for play like Bynum's. It's used all the time in soccer. I'd use the same term about Wade btw. As for Bynum, check out some of his "greatest hits", where he deliberately takes out players who are in the air and in defenseless positions. Child, jerk or punk don't really fit as descriptions of that kind of behavior.

exactly. Plenty of NHL players have been described as thugs, yet none would be described as gangstas

Because, with some exceptions, they're white

  To be clear, though, Roy didn't call Bynum, a gangsta, he called him a thug, which you seem to realize is a term that's applied equally to different races.

This really just depends on people's definition of thug..for some thug/gangsta are synonymous and even though we want those terms to be race neutral a lot of time it's not, but I'm really not trying to get that deep about Bynum..lol.

[Roy H.]

Because, with some exceptions, they're white

Right.  Some (mostly white) hockey players are called thugs for the way they play the game. If a black NBA player plays basketball in a similar fashion, it's not racist or off-limits.

Unless, that is, it' a okay to call Tie Domi a thug, but not Donald Brashear.

[jojowhite10]

Because, with some exceptions, they're white

Right.  Some (mostly white) hockey players are called thugs for the way they play the game. If a black NBA player plays basketball in a similar fashion, it's not racist or off-limits.

Unless, that is, it' a okay to call Tie Domi a thug, but not Donald Brashear.

Yeah dude, if you called a black man who is known for fighting the disparaging term of 'thug' then you would be in the wrong. I don't know what is so confusing about this.

Whether you want to believe it or not, words carry different connotations when directed at different people...

[Roy H.]

Because, with some exceptions, they're white

Right.  Some (mostly white) hockey players are called thugs for the way they play the game. If a black NBA player plays basketball in a similar fashion, it's not racist or off-limits.

Unless, that is, it' a okay to call Tie Domi a thug, but not Donald Brashear.

Yeah dude, if you called a black man who is known for fighting the disparaging term of 'thug' then you would be in the wrong. I don't know what is so confusing about this.

Calling a white thug a thug = totally cool

Calling a black thug a thug = totally off-limits

Yeah, that does make a lot of sense.  I guess I'm just not that big into denying reality.

Andrew Bynum (and Tie Domi and Donald Brashear and Bill Laimbeer) are all thugs. To treat folks differently due exclusively to skin color is wrong, and prejudiced.

[sed522002]

Because, with some exceptions, they're white

Right.  Some (mostly white) hockey players are called thugs for the way they play the game. If a black NBA player plays basketball in a similar fashion, it's not racist or off-limits.

Unless, that is, it' a okay to call Tie Domi a thug, but not Donald Brashear.

Yeah dude, if you called a black man who is known for fighting the disparaging term of 'thug' then you would be in the wrong. I don't know what is so confusing about this.

Calling a white thug a thug = totally cool

Calling a black thug a thug = totally off-limits

Yeah, that does make a lot of sense.  I guess I'm just not that big into denying reality.

Andrew Bynum (and Tie Domi and Donald Brashear and Bill Laimbeer) are all thugs. To treat folks differently due exclusively to skin color is wrong, and prejudiced.

How about we just lock this thread and call it a day because it's going far off the subject posted.

[jojowhite10]

Because, with some exceptions, they're white

Right.  Some (mostly white) hockey players are called thugs for the way they play the game. If a black NBA player plays basketball in a similar fashion, it's not racist or off-limits.

Unless, that is, it' a okay to call Tie Domi a thug, but not Donald Brashear.

Yeah dude, if you called a black man who is known for fighting the disparaging term of 'thug' then you would be in the wrong. I don't know what is so confusing about this.

Calling a white thug a thug = totally cool

Calling a black thug a thug = totally off-limits

Yeah, that does make a lot of sense.  I guess I'm just not that big into denying reality.

Andrew Bynum (and Tie Domi and Donald Brashear and Bill Laimbeer) are all thugs. To treat folks differently due exclusively to skin color is wrong, and prejudiced.

Except these are professional athletes who either 'play dirty' or are paid to be tough and fight in a sport that welcomes that behavior. Neither are criminal. There are better words to describe all of them. For instance, the common pejorative term in hockey is 'Goon', which we conveniently forgot when grabbing at straws to the universal presence of thug. And considering I played professional soccer briefly and never once heard the word thug uttered throughout my life and instead heard punk a lot I have doubts about that.

When directed at black athletes it carries a level of hate that it doesn't when directed toward white athletes.

Clearly it's not off-limits, since you seem so keen on using it. It just makes some think differently of you when you do. And you can think less of me for being acutely aware of the weight words carry, but I would rather be hypersensitive than insensitive any day of the week my man.

[barefacedmonk]

I would have called Pekovic a thug if he played like one. Bynum plays like one. His style of play makes him a thug. Not his lifestyle or skin colour.

Andrew Bynum is a punk thug.

So, Andrew Bynum took it upon himself to mark the Lakers' disappointing and pathetic exit from the 2011 Playoffs with one of the worst cheap shots seen in recent NBA Playoffs memory with a forearm shiver into the body of JJ Barea.  There's "playoff basketball" and then there's being a thug and an idiot.

Link

[jojowhite10]

P.S. Feel free to lock this as sed522002 suggested.

[ImShakHeIsShaq]

So are you telling me this could be a bad signing? Sorry, I don't see it! I think this is gonna be big for them if he ONLY gives what he did in Clev. Y'all underestimate the fact that Ind is a top team whi Klein e Cleveland was on the outside looking in! I look for Bynum's attitude to be held in check partly b.c of this but don't mistake the impact of the other players and organization, they will be huge for him! I could see Bynum killing it out there in a month... they signed him at the perfect time. He has plenty of time to get his act together and round into optimal form for the playoff run! Just imagine the gift Ind got if it's true that all Bynum wanted to do is pmay for a contender... Hibbert starting and sgutting it down then you got Bynum as the backup? Wow. Just imagine how you would feel if the Celts had a tandum like that, you'd lose your mind, get real! Bynum may have been bad for Cleveland but I'm beymtting tgat like LA, Indiana can keep him in line as long as they are competing! If not they will send him home and deop him long after another team can sign him! I will bet good money (if I was loose with my money, im not lol), Bynum is gonna show up and show out by the time the playoffs roll around! Good job Ind, I'm willing to bet Mia made that deal with us in hopes tgey would be getting Bynum, they got slapped twice! Especially if Philly majes the playoffs next season haha!

[BballTim]

Because, with some exceptions, they're white

Right.  Some (mostly white) hockey players are called thugs for the way they play the game. If a black NBA player plays basketball in a similar fashion, it's not racist or off-limits.

Unless, that is, it' a okay to call Tie Domi a thug, but not Donald Brashear.

Yeah dude, if you called a black man who is known for fighting the disparaging term of 'thug' then you would be in the wrong. I don't know what is so confusing about this.

Calling a white thug a thug = totally cool

Calling a black thug a thug = totally off-limits

Yeah, that does make a lot of sense.  I guess I'm just not that big into denying reality.

Andrew Bynum (and Tie Domi and Donald Brashear and Bill Laimbeer) are all thugs. To treat folks differently due exclusively to skin color is wrong, and prejudiced.

Except these are professional athletes who either 'play dirty' or are paid to be tough and fight in a sport that welcomes that behavior. Neither are criminal. There are better words to describe all of them. For instance, the common pejorative term in hockey is 'Goon', which we conveniently forgot when grabbing at straws to the universal presence of thug. And considering I played professional soccer briefly and never once heard the word thug uttered throughout my life and instead heard punk a lot I have doubts about that.

  Just for a quick check I went to bigsoccer.com and searched for thug in the forums, there were a couple of hundred posts using that term (which must be the search cutoff) since some time in November. It's extremely commonplace to use that term. If you've never heard the term you don't follow the sport too closely. It's like saying you've never heard of a player being called a hack, or a hockey player being called a goon. If you don't like the term, fine. But don't act like it isn't used all the time in sports about people of all different races.

[Roy H.]

At this point, let's get back to discussion of the signing please.  The race tangent shouldn't have been brought up or discussed, as 1) it's off-topic and 2) it's kind of silly.

[GreenFaith1819]

Great signing for Indy.

I wish Bynum (and Indy) well.

This man - just a couple of yrs ago - was arguably the best Center in the game.

I hope he can get that back. Dwight needs some competition.

[Tnerb02]

Great signing for Indy just because now he can't sign with the Heat.