Swag Must Die: NBA Shameful Fashion

I realize that ego helps world class athletes become successful, I realize that such ego can manifest itself into swagger, and furthermore that swagger makes someone want to be the center of attention. But I don't get how that became "I got money, I can buy whatever and I'm still gonna be the man when I wear it." The confidence becomes unbridled eccentricity and becomes the things that u see below. This probably happens across the major sports, but for today i will focus on the NBA players and commentators. Take a look at this buffoonery:

Kobe, Kobe, Kobe. U want me to seriously consider u being the best player or Laker in history? Beyond the fact that I don't like u as a person, this is not helping get more respect from ANYONE. Even as bad as MJ and Magic can dress, I've never seen them wearing blouses.
Which one is Shaq and which one is Grimace? lol. As if it's not bad enough to pay whatever it costs to make a purple suit for a 7'2" 350 lb man, he had the audacity to pay extra make it a three piece suit. He probably paid a pretty penny to get some custom size 24 purple and silver gators or something too. Congrats u have the tools to be Grimace or Barney any Halloween u'd like.
Wow, Sam Perkins has a box in the front and dreds in the back but ppl didn't even notice cuz MJ's cum stained jeans r stealing all the attention...in all the wrong ways. LOL. Even if u were gonna by that (Already borderline offensive), ur gonna wear it with an outfit that demands either slacks or neat pressed jeans? G.O.A.T. or not, between this and the Hitler mustache (we won't even criticize executive decision making), it's not a good look MJ.
This nigga here, he don't even have a shirt on. It's straight leopard skin on nigga skin. He look worse than Tyrese with denim suits and no shirts on in 95 degree L.A. weather. He looked in the mirror at that outfit and said "U know wut, I'm so fly I don't need a shirt or even a white beater to go with this. I'm fly as it," Times like that, someone should have politely slapped the shit out of him before he walked out of the house.
Chocolate Thunder himself. It takes a lot of 1960's curtain fabric to make this suit for a man this tall. Did he buy this for an "ugly jacket" contest during the holiday season and run with it? I don't know. I guess when u get old but aren't in the limelight, u look for ways to display ur swagger and reclaim some of ur shine. I bet he picked up some 46 yr old woman in this that night too.
Craig Sager, the most consistently eccentric man in the world of sports production. He probably walks through normal suit shops and scoffs at all these simple and classy business man kind of suits. He probably mutes the State of the Union Address and ridicule how plain Obama looks in his conservative suit. I think he shops at the same suit shop as the Riddler and the Joker in Gotham City. He has a new colorful and extra textured suit every night. This man's closet is probably as colorful as a Skittles factory; I'd probably feel like I was trippin on acid with all the colors I'd see.
The man, the myth, the legend. Walt Clyde Frazier is Swag Personified in NBA History. Even in his playing days, he used to come with a cape on and such. But this here is shameful. I thought he was gonna do a commercial with the cows telling me to "Eat More Chicken." He probably uses pick up lines talking about "milking" while he's wearing this number.

These are but a few offenders, there are MANY MANY more, but this gives u a good sample. Directly in contrast of Soulja Boy's song, these cats need to turn their swag OFF. That swag must die. Unlike many cold guys (including my Air Force father), I do believe that personality and uniqueness keeps American sports entertaining. But sometimes that personality forces a full on assault of my vision when I'm watchin TV. C'mon Guys. Much respect to how well u gentlemen do what u do. But please guys, Do Better...
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Stop Me When I Stop Lying: Tim Tebow, A Study in Mixed Feelings

This blog entry is overdue. Obviously I (a sports and ESPN addict) have grown very tired of the media-created "Tebow Mania" which has swept the nation - I hope not the world - the past few months. I sit here after he's finally been eliminated from the playoffs and am still hearing more about him than the teams still competing for a Championship. I'm sitting here thinking and I can't imagine someone who has caused more mixed feelings on so many different levels. Whenever arguments start about him, I start Tebow bashing" and get to the point where u say "Man, u really hate this guy." That's the point where I find myself shooting completely the other way, like "I mean hes a great person and leader and such tho" and I realize that I need to organize my thoughts, so here they are. Timothy Richard Tebow is a great young man personally and spiritually. His humility, motivational skills, and open faith give him, his teammates and followers tremendous confidence in him; this aids him in his well documented 4th quarter successes. He's a true high character role model in an age where a lot of athletes are not that way. These factors, which are very much more important in his life outside of the sporting world, are what make him so popular and get people to ignore the harsh truth about Tebow inside the sports profession he chose to take part in. That truth is that he is not nearly the quarterback he gets credit for being. Think of what a written job description of playing NFL quarterback would read like. Throwing the ball accurately and consistently is not 100% of the QB job description, there are rushing, toughness, and intangible factors; he has an abundance of those last traits. However, throwing the ball accurately and consistently (key word, CONSISTENTLY, not 46% of the time) still comprises a good 60% of the job description. Even in his historical string of comebacks, the facts are he didn't complete 50% of his passes (the certifiable standard for QBs is usually 60%) and looked sub-par for the first 3.5 quarters of most games. And unlike most QBs (the ultimate "all the glory, all the blame" position in football), ppl praised him in victory, but then blamed their defense (who actually saved many of their wins by limiting teams to 14 pts or less) when they lost. I get why Christians look up to him and support him unconditionally. But then I see how so many athletes, especially supporters of Black QBs, argue that no Black QB keeps his starting job even if he's winning; Ask Tavaris Jackson, Arron Brooks, Cordell Stewart and other Black QBs that won more games and had better passing numbers than Tebow and still got run out of their towns. I get how his "Never Give Up on urself, Keep the Faith" messages are so unifying and motivational. At the same time, I can see resentment coming from the fact that he got Kyle Orton run out of town from his popularity and not outplaying him on the field. He also gets credit for two national championship victories when he was a backup and situational player (like 10 plays a game) behind my hometown's own Chris Leak who actually led the team; this disrespect has led to much of the Tebow resentment here in Charlotte in particular. I get how ppl say he deserves a chance at QB, he's been a winner all through high school and college. But at the same time Leak didn't lost a game for 3.8 years of his college career and led that team through the SEC to the National Championship; where is the outcry for his opportunity? I've heard people say his unorthodox success is further validation of the power of faith; it's gained positive attention towards Christianity, especially with the inexplicable 3:16 numerical values in the win over the Steelers (316 passing yds, 31.6 yds per completion, 31.6 TV rating, 31:06 time of possession, etc). While I do think much of his confidence and personality comes from his faith, I do not think God would be caught up on something like who wins football games. So I can see how some Christians might see this as trivializing the works of the divine power. I could also see how those who don't like the concept of religion could point to this as a reason for their distaste. As a role model, I get how a Congressman could ask him appear for the prayer at major events. At the same time, there are better QBs who are also Christians and true Christian figures who are getting overlooked for such an opportunity. People have gone so far as calling praying on one knee (which has been done for as long as I can remember) "Tebowing" which I find ridiculous. I get why friends of mine support him and truly want to see him succeed (despite the "great QB" hyperbole that's often given to him unfairly). At the same time, my best friend said he represents corruption in White America, the "Great White Hope" who will get the notoriety and doors opened that others are more deserving of but will never get a crack at. He could probably get elected mayor of Gainesville, FL right now. I see how ppl saw his winning streak and loved him saying "All He Does Is Win". But I also see how his boss John Elway (certifiable great QB by definition and success) isn't convinced that he's ultimately gonna be his guy. I say all this to say Tim Tebow (under little fault of his own, he doesn't play into it) has something about him that's caused "Tebowmania" among coaches, sportswriters, and coaches all over. Unfortunately for him, all of that presses (a ridiculous amount of it) has been enough to provide all sides with what they need to paint him what they think of him; humble hero, recipient of "favorites games", faithful savior of pop culture generation, undeserving Great White Hope, Christian Crusador, exploitative media hog, ultimate "between the numbers" team competitor, inadequate QB keeping job through popularity, etc. The media created it with the brightest spotlight we've seen in a long time. I wish they would just let him play the game and things will be what they will be. So to bring it all back, I have no problems with him as a person. But my response to the media circus is simple, criticism will end when he starts performing his position like a first round pick QB he was drafted as. Stop Me When I Start Lying...

Racist but Proud Commentary on Heisman

I'm very biased, but I'm ecstatic that Robert Griffin III won the Heisman over Andrew Luck. Not just because he's Black. But because he's a Black QB and he looks like all the young Black men that make White America cringe and clutch their pocket books when they walk past them on the street. Sure Troy Smith and Cam Newton won, but they are clean cut and conservative looking, job interview style. Griffin is as dark or darker than me, with dreds/plats down to the shoulder; if u asked white America to identify the guy holding the trophy, they might guess he's a rapper or something. In a year where the season started with everyone assuming the Heisman and No.1 draft pick should be basically mailed to Andrew Luck's house in advance, beating him out was never going to be easy. RG3 not only did it, but he did it at the same position (without being just a runner either, he's the most efficient passer in the country) at a school without the glamorous football past (he's provided Baylor with it's two winningest seasons). He stole the Heisman season from the man marketed as the next NFL legend. Although he's still gonna be a lower draft pick that Luck, he's show enough with his arm that he can be a first round pick also. And with the success of Cam Newton, young Black QBs could be making a comeback as McNabb's career ends and Vick is a few years from that point too. Griffin might change it even more because in addition to speed (world class track speed that is), he's passing with amazing efficiency and deep accuracy. He could shake things up. I root for Black/minority QBs and coaches and the future is looking ok for them right now.

The Return: Part 2, 24 hour breakfast spots

U leave a club or bar at 3 am, where u wanna be. IHOP. Steak and Shake. R. Thomas. the World's most famous Greasy spoon, The Waffle House with its signature All-Star Special. 'Nuff Said

The Return: Part 1, Returning for Championship Football

In my other Malaysian journal blog (nigelsroadlesstraveled.blogspot.com), I've already pointed out some distinctive things I doubt I'll see or hear again once I leave Malaysia. In this blog, I have decided I feel like celebrating some of the reasons I'm excited to return to America. The first I'd like to highlight is returning in time for College Football Bowl Season and the NFL playoffs. I'm watching THE FUCK out of every football game I feel like watching. I've missed one and a half full seasons of NCAA and NFL football. I missed Cam Newton's remarkable Heisman season and the beginning of his superstar career with my hometown team. I missed Aaron Rodger's glorious playoff run. I may have missed Peyton Manning's last game as an NFL quarterback. Thus far this season, I've missed the success of rookies Andy Dalton, AJ Green, and more. I've missed the resurgence of the Bay Area (the 49ers and Raiders). I've missed the rise of Tebow Mania. I've missed the Heisman campaigns of Andrew Luck, Robert Griffith III and Trent Richardson. I've missed LSU's and Alabama's unprecedented dominance (although I still don't think an interdivision rematch is appropriate to decide the national championship) throughout this season. I've missed so much that it will take precedence over other events during the first few months of my return. If someone were to invite me to something that prevents me from watching some important football game (intriguing bowl match up or playoff game), I very well might say no with no remorse. NOT ONE FUCK will be given about how much they do not like it. After all I've missed, I deserve to be a football addicted bum for a while if I choose to. I've Been Called Worse...

Politics and Perceptions in Boxing

As I sit here, disgusted by the outcome of the fight that I just witnessed, it makes more clear the impact of politics and perceptions present in boxing right now, especially surrounding its biggest two stars and pound-for-pound best, Filipino Manny Pacquiao and American Floyd Mayweather. I can't think of a more clear example of this duplicity than analysis of the latest fight of each of those two. Tonight, Manny Pacquiao - boxing's "good guy"- fought the third fight of a trilogy against Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez. Marquez, in the opinion of myself and most boxing experts, won both of the first two fights but one was called a tight win for Manny and the other was a draw. Marquez was fueled by the fact that he feels he was cheated in both fights, Pacquiao was fueled by the fact that Marquez wore a shirt that saying he beat Manny twice while he was in Manny's native Philippines. Tonight, Marquez looked sharper than ever and seemingly won the fought clearly, about 8 rounds to 4 by my count. But it was ruled a win for Pacquiao to the dismay of the fans who booed and throw cans and trash into the ring. But his admirers are still trying to diplomatically act like his victory was justified. Becuz it was competitive between two fighters, they hail this as "everything that is right about boxing" despite a probably politically laced unjust outcome. The louder and flashier Mayweather, the sports biggest cash cow while also the most hated villain, broke his 16 month layoff to fight Victor Ortiz, an up and coming Mexican champion coming off the biggest victory of his career. Ortiz, being dominated throughout the first 3 rounds, decided to turn up the aggressiveness in the 4th round. Getting frustrated he started "rabbit punching" Floyd in the back of the head (illegal) and then launched two head butts into Floyd's lip (highly illegal); the last one looked like a soccer player jumping for a header. After a separation a point deduction from Ortiz, the fighters touch gloves (signifying the fight time back in action), Floyd hammers Ortiz twice as his hands are still down; Ortiz doesn't get up, it's a knockout. The first rule in boxing is "Protect yourself at all times." I admit, it wasn't polite, but it was legal, no loop holes or anything. But the outrage that so many Floyd-haters have thrown his way has been outrageous. To recap, Ortiz gets frustrated with losing and illegal rabbit punches Floyd and then busts Floyd's lip with a jumping headbutt, when time starts back, Floyd knocks him out...and Floyd is the bad guy. Conversely, I've heard this knockout victory condemned as "everything that is wrong about boxing" with people going on to say "Floyd is ruining the sport of boxing." Riiiiiiight. The argument between who is better and who does/doesn't want to fight has been filled with such double standards because of the good VS. bad dynamic. Despite the fact that the bad guy role and shit talking has made him rich and his fights successful (dominating all the financial records in the sport) because as many tune in to root against him as to marvel at his skills. People try to say Manny is undoubtedly one of the best ever and Floyd isn't, citing better competition. However, they've fought many of the same fighters (Oscar De La Hoya, Marquez, Ricky Hatton, Shane Mosley, etc). In the mental game of boxing, Floyd fights guys who are coming off victories and possibly on career highs (see Ortiz with his biggest win, Mosley after a career-reviving KO of Margarito, Hatton undefeated, Marquez after KO'ing Diaz, De La Hoya revived, etc) and he's beat them all. But before the fight tonight, Manny has consistently only fought fighters coming off of losses (several times to Mayweather), often knockouts (which are known to mess with boxers' psyche); This was the case with De La Hoya, Hatton, Mosley, Miguel Cotto, Josh Clottey, and Antonio Margarito; that's Manny's whole last 3-4 years. Furthermore, Manny (or more accurately Freddie Roach, his trainer) tries to set fights up at catch weights so they can squeak out some advantage fighting guys at weights their bodies aren't in good condition to make (154-lb champ De La Hoya trying to make 142 lbs, Marquez the 135-lb champ fighting at 144 instead of 140 when Manny can easily make 140, etc. Floyd on the other hand, has moved up to 154 to beat De La Hoya, despite the fact that Floyd can't effectively gain or lose weight and showed up on fight night at 148 lbs. Furthermore, this entire "Manny is ready for Floyd, but Floyd is running scared" isn't making much sense to me. The first time this fight possibility came up - in 08 right after Floyd beat Zab Judah - it was Pacquiao who backed out of the fight to fight someone else. The first time it came up a year or so ago, Floyd signed the contract first for promoter Bob Arum to take it to the Phillippines to Manny. Manny refused to sign it because it had an Olympic style blood testing stipulation, basically up until 10-14 days before they could test randomly. Floyd had required this of every one of his last five opponents or so, and he had obliged himself. He went so far as to sue Mayweather for defamation of his name. Now, I do think Floyd went a little overboard with his insinuations that Manny rose so fast and shied away from drug testing because he has been using something. But noone said Floyd was polite or charming. The next time the fight possibility came up about six months after, Floyd claimed the negotiations never happened and he never got a phone call. I don't know if I believe that so I will put the blame on Floyd for failure of the 3rd attempt. But the first two were on Manny. I say all this to say, I think the media gives Floyd a raw shake because he's a loudmouth, but I want them to settle the current Good VS Evil argument in the ring. And this time, I'm rooting for the BAD GUY.

Stop Me When I Start Lying: Not as Normal As I Thought

There are certain things I had come to believe where very normal here in 2011 . Well, one of teh joys of living overseas is that you see that they are not. LOL. Here are some of the things I've found were not nearly as normal as I thought:

• Toilet paper. Garden hoses beside the toilet and completely wet bathrooms aren't cool.
• Silverware. I struggle to take anyone seriously who eats curry-covered foods with their hands, even when wearing dress clothes.
• Shower curtains and proper tubs. No use in the entire bathroom getting wet when something so simple can keep things together
• The concept of "the right of way" while driving; Venomous anger runs up my spine several times a day at moves that Malaysians think are normal which completely disrespect this all-time driving standard
• Central air conditioning and hot water; Why isn't central A/C a priority in a country where it's 90 degrees every day? How am I supposed to keep my clothes white when the water is cold? Why do I have to add an attachment to every single shower head just to take a hot shower? They act like I'm crazy when I ask such questions.
• The desire to keep insects, lizards, and other such creatures out of your house. You'd be seen as a pussy here if you minded seeing lizards run across the wall of your living room; get used to it.
• Hobbies/enthusiasms. The average person does absolutely nothing interesting, and the only idea for going out is drinking at the same street called Changkat
• Women of "substance"; I admire intelligence and ambition in ladies, which is very hard to find here. Most of these women bored the hell out of me.
• Ambition in general, above and beyond just getting married and starting a family at a young age
• The desire to take vacations and do something other than work; Why is it that most locals here have never even been to neighboring countries when they're only a few hours away in each direction?
• The desire to stay fit; Locals eat nothing but rice and meat, then they don't work out and complain about why they don't look the way they want to
• Casual sex; With the aforementioned issues with substance-less women, becoming 'boo'd' up to fulfill your sexual needs is more a tale of settling for less than your standard than committing to someone u like enough to be in the place.

I guess the differences are what make places distinct, right? In my mind the question I just asked seems like a way for someone to rationalize not knowing how to use toilet paper or silverware in 2011. LOL. Stop Me When I Start Lying