Met Scal last night

[LarBrd33]

I was having dinner with my girlfriend close to our condo in Bellevue, WA (near Seattle).   Scal strolled in and sat down right behind me.   He was there with his wife, but I would have felt like a total fool if I didn't at least say hello.  I let him know I was probably the biggest Celtic fan in the entire state of Washington.   He was super friendly and super enthusiastic.  Seems like such a nice dude.  Apparently he's from Enumclaw, WA (about 50 minutes from Seattle/Bellevue) which explains why he was there. 

I had a brief conversation with him.  He asked me what I thought of the team right now and I admitted that while I was happy about picking up Lee, I was interested to see what else Danny can do since the team seems to have a lot of redundancies... which he seemed to agree with.   I asked if he had heard anything about Danny making any more moves before we made Lee/Crowder official and he didn't seem to think it was likely.  I mentioned that a lot of the fans seemed to want Gallo, but he agreed that ship sailed with Gallo signing the extension.  He did seem to be enthusiastic about some of our pieces and specifically mentioned liking Jordan Mickey...  but he admitted the obvious... we need to do everything we can to get a superstar at some point. 

It was cool to meet him.  A couple years ago I drove up to Portland with a bunch of my buddies to catch a Blazers/Celtics game and we happened to stay at the same hotel as the Celtics.  I kept walking by Scal in the lobby and regretted not saying something to him.  Glad I got to say something this time.

[apc]

very cool, but where is the selfie? 

[PhoSita]

very cool, but where is the selfie? 

Agreed, pic or it didn't happen.

[max215]

Very cool!

[Robb]

Going to be a long commute for the guy who was looking for the Celtic-attended restaurant...

[Gainesville Celtic]

Not one Bismack Biyombo or Nik Stauskas question?!? This is clearly a made up story.


Haha... j/k... awesome stuff. Glad he was cool! 

[LarBrd33]

Going to be a long commute for the guy who was looking for the Celtic-attended restaurant...

Lol. 

[LarBrd33]

very cool, but where is the selfie? 

Agreed, pic or it didn't happen.

Eh, I didn't really want to bug him for it.  I tried getting a pic with Bill SImmons when I met him in New Orleans a couple years ago and he wouldn't do it.  Lol.  I more just wanted to chat with Scal quickly.   He was with his wife and I was with my girlfriend and her father... felt weird to ask for a pic.  I wasn't even going to bother him, but he was sitting back-to-back with me and it didn't seem too bothersome to say something quickly.

I was mostly just confused what he was doing at a random restaurant in Bellevue.   I didn't realize he lived in Washington state.   He went to high school here apparently.   He said he will probably have to move to Boston at some point... but my guess is that would be if Tommy retires... which hopefully never happens. 

[slamtheking]

very cool, but where is the selfie? 

Agreed, pic or it didn't happen.

Eh, I didn't really want to bug him for it.  I tried getting a pic with Bill SImmons when I met him in New Orleans a couple years ago and he wouldn't do it.  Lol.  I more just wanted to chat with Scal quickly.   He was with his wife and I was with my girlfriend and her father... felt weird to ask for a pic.  I wasn't even going to bother him, but he was sitting back-to-back with me and it didn't seem too bothersome to say something quickly.

what's worse is that you told him a "lot of fans" wanted Gallo.  shame on you for lying like that. 

[bdm860]

Did Bill Simmons give you any reason for not wanting to take a pic?

On the surface, without any detail, that seems like a diva-ish move for someone that's supposed to be the "common man."

[PhoSita]

very cool, but where is the selfie? 

Agreed, pic or it didn't happen.

Eh, I didn't really want to bug him for it.  I tried getting a pic with Bill SImmons when I met him in New Orleans a couple years ago and he wouldn't do it.  Lol.  I more just wanted to chat with Scal quickly.   He was with his wife and I was with my girlfriend and her father... felt weird to ask for a pic.  I wasn't even going to bother him, but he was sitting back-to-back with me and it didn't seem too bothersome to say something quickly.

If you're sitting back to back with a 6'9'' ginger who you know is a former professional basketball player, it's probably more awkward to never acknowledge it than to say something to him.

But I'm sure if I were in that situation I'd be hesitant to say something, too.

[Gainesville Celtic]

a little off topic, but to the point of "do i bother him or not":
--------

I once saw my favorite author in this like asian home goods bazaar just outside Porter Sq. on Mass Ave. I was just killing time waitnig for a friend i think...

She was checking out and i thought of saying something and didn't. As soon as she walked out i regretted it, so i walked out and said to her at her car, "Are you Marge Piercy?!?"

She seemed genuinely surprised --- prob. b/c i'm way out of her target demographic --- but I said "sorry to bother you i just had to tell you that VIDA is one of my favorite books ever." She seemed genuinely thankful even though it was clear neither she nor i wanted to chit chat.

I was always glad I told her.

[LarBrd33]

Did Bill Simmons give you any reason for not wanting to take a pic?

On the surface, without any detail, that seems like a diva-ish move for someone that's supposed to be the "common man."

I met Simmons at a random bar in New Orleans during Superbowl weekend.  It was like 2 in the morning.  I actually spotted Rembert Browne first, but as I was approaching him to say hello I crossed paths with Simmons.   He was friendly but when I asked if I could take a pic with him he said he "wasn't supposed to be there"... I didn't ask for clarification, but I assumed it meant that either his wife or ESPN wasn't supposed to know he was in New Orleans at a random bar at 2 in the morning. 

But also in his defense... I had a professional camera strapped to my hip at the time.  I was doing a video on the Superbowl for my company and out on the street getting random b-roll of the nightlife.  I realized I might have looked like paparazzi or something.   During that same night I was at tiny jazz club with like 15 people and noticed Neil Patrick Harris.  I got a picture with him, but realized my camera may have made me seem like I was working for TMZ or something.  I explained to NPH that I was just doing b-roll for a random corporate video.   That was a fun night.  Andrew Luck was there too.  He was wasted.  It was just me, NPH, Andrew Luck and about 15 other people dancing in a little jazz club.   Later in the night, I saw Andrew Luck finally approach NPH... and despite the fact he was wasted, he seemed more nervous than I did.  I thought that was funny. 

[Al91]

Awesome! Scal has such a great personality and I love the experience he brings to the broadcasts. I try and catch him on Sirius NBA Radio as much as possible during my commute. I've even been able to speak with him briefly over the radio twice, as recently as yesterday as a matter of fact! Would love to have the experience you did.

And going off the last comments re: not wanting to bother, I sat right behind the bench at Rondo's charity game at Harvard, the game that featured Pierce, Perk, Lowry, Gay, and even Jeremy Lin before Linsanity (this was during the lockout). Didn't have it in me to say anything to the guy, even at a charity game.

I got daps from OJ Mayo years ago in Boston when he played for the Grizzlies though. Was one of my favorite players before he established that he hit his plateau in Memphis.

[LarBrd33]

Yeah...  I guess it just depends on the situation.  I don't typically want to bother people.     

A couple years ago I saw Nate Robinson at the movie theater in the same building as my office, but didn't bug him because he was with a group of people. 

A couple weeks ago I was at dinner with my girlfriend and say Jay Pharoah sitting at the bar as I walked out.  I came very close to saying something to him, because I'm one of the few people who watches SNL religiously, but he was macking on some girl and I didn't want to interrupt.

A couple years ago I was at UCB Theater in NYC... I showed up late and the only tickets they had left were standing-room only.   I was standing next to Zach Woods (from "The Office" and later "Silicon Valley") and like 8 ridiculously attractive girls hanging all over him.   I didn't bother him.  I thought it was funny that a guy who plays such a nerdy character was surrounded by tons of comedy groupies.   I remember thinking to myself... "This guy f----s" 

On one work trip, I was walking outside 30 Rockefeller Center on the way to a sports bar to catch a Celtic playoff game... I saw Seth Meyers run out of the building desperately looking for a cab.  I happened to remember that Seth Meyers is a Celtic fan, so I shouted out, "Seth... Go Celtics!" and he gave me a knowing nod... I assume the dude was probably heading somewhere to watch the team too.  If I had more guts, I would have asked where he was watching the game.  Lol.

I saw Shawn Kemp hanging out at a bar in Seattle that I later learned he owned.  I was with my best friend who is a hardcore diehard Sonic fan from birth... and I could see him freaking out... so I went up to Kemp on my friend's behalf and we got pictures with him.   But then a few months ago I saw Detlef Schrempf in the lobby of my office building standing by himself, but I didn't want to bother him. 

When I drove up to catch the Blazers/Celtics game a couple years ago, I was in an elevator with Fab Melo and Avery Bradley and briefly talked with them and wished them luck.   My friend come down a couple minutes later and I saw him get out of the elevator with Paul Pierce, but apparently he was too starstruck to say anything.   I would have liked to have talked to Pierce, but I wasn't going to chase him down. 

Just depends on the situation, I guess.