SOMM Latest News
Federer Upset at Rogers CupWorld’s #1 Roger Federer, Rogers Cup winner in 2004 and 2006 (he was undefeated there) suffered from some very shoddy play as he was upset by Gilles Simon,... Read more »
LA Sparks-Detroit Shock Game Ends in SkirmishThere will be repercussions for the fight that erupted during the Detroit Shock-Los Angeles Sparks WNBA game. With just a few seconds remaining in the game (4.6... Read more »
Josh Childress to Greece?If an NBA player is not going to get what he wants out of the Lig, he might just hop overseas. Atlanta Hawks swingman Josh Childess is seriously considering playing... Read more »
Comment of the Week - White Boys Gone Wild: It’s a Racist, Racist WorldI wanted to do something like this awhile ago. What I was doing, though, was taking comments, good, bad, or ugly, noting them then commenting on the comments. There... Read more »
DWil
ESPN-ing Blackness
(This is written in reaction to a general feeling of what I consider to be a “defeatist malaise” among people who would want to see truly diverse voices in mainstream media (MSM)…)
Jemele Hill recently wrote a commentary about the NFL and it’s new emphasis on stopping “gang sign” among its players. Beyond its initial two sentences, the piece wavers between a weak criticism of the NFL’s new focus on the ephemeral and outright pandering to the league itself.
The commentary illustrates the fact that truly diverse voices are missing in the mainstream, especially amongst black writers. Hill made the most telling statement some months back during a “First and 10″ segment on its First Take morning show. She was telling Skip Bayless that at one time she was quite the rabble-rouser with thoughts of revolution. Bayless asked her, “What happened?” To which she replied succinctly, “I grew up.”
There is a rich history of truth to power journalism amongst black men and women in national publications. For these writers, “growing up” meant honing their writing to better express their sadnss, anger, and dissatisfaction with American society. Growing up meant better perceiving and identifying expressions of racism in every nook and cranny of U.S. culture.
Today, though, those voices do not exist.
MCBias
What Cleveland Must Do to Reach the 2009 Finals
We at SOMM are continuing a series on how the 14 play-off teams that did not make it to the 2008 Finals can make it in 2009. (If time permits, we may also do lottery teams). If you are a dedicated fan of one of the teams, let me know and we may also feature your thoughts when we get to your team.
Amar from Cavalier Attitude at http://mvn.com/nba-cavaliers/ was gracious enough to share some thoughts on how the Cavaliers might improve this off-season:
A few months ago, somebody said that if defense and rebounding alone won NBA championships, then Cleveland would have had a parade in June of ‘07. They didn’t, so you can figure out what that means.
It also means that the Cavs have those two aspects of the game down. But anybody who watched the Cavs intense seven-game second-round series with the Celtics can vouch for the fact that Cleveland needs another scorer besides LeBron James to get buckets. It really doesn’t matter who that guy is, whether it be a big man in the post or a sharp-shooter on the perimeter. Somebody else has to help LB shoulder the load, and that somebody else isn’t on the roster - at least not yet.
MODI
ESPN: Don’t Hate the Journalist, Hate the Machine
ESPN has been downright atrocious the last couple of weeks. Its bias was most blatant last Friday in its refusal to cover same-day breaking stories on the law-breaking of three white athletes (Matt Jones, Brad Miller, and Ted Dupay) on any of its regularly scheduled afternoon talk shows. Please pardon the interruption, but this fact wouldn’t be big news if these shows didn’t regularly moralize around the horn about any black athlete who sneezes.
Just a week earlier, three separate ESPN shows debated and pontificated over what Derrick Rose’s very first speeding ticket can tell us about his character (this is not a joke!). Read more »
SML
Brandon Jennings, Heading To EuropeThis NY Times article from last night seems to indicate that Brandon Jennings (”The Takeover”) is seriously considering the European option. This ESPN article from early this morning confirmed it: Brandon Jennings is skipping college ball to go play in Europe:
“That’s a moot point now,” [Jenning’s lawyer] Valle said. “He’s not going to the University of Arizona. Brandon plans on going to Europe.”
One of the big issues in play here is that Jennings is from Compton. He’s not rich. He’s not even middle class. He’s poor. His family is poor, unless you count his cousin, also from LA, Marcus Williams, who currently plays for the NJ Nets.
Read more »
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Gunnin' for that #1 Spot trailer. Adam Yauch director/producer.
Odds and...
Federer Upset at Rogers CupWorld’s #1 Roger Federer, Rogers Cup winner in 2004 and 2006 (he was undefeated there) suffered from some very shoddy play as he was upset by Gilles Simon, 2-6, 7-5, 6-4, the winner in last week’s ATP tournament in Indianapolis.
Simon played unbelievably well, but Federer committed over 50...
Read more »
There will be repercussions for the fight that erupted during the Detroit Shock-Los Angeles Sparks WNBA game.
With just a few seconds remaining in the game (4.6 seconds), after a free throw Plenette Pierson intentionally entangled herself with Candace Parker. Pierson pulled Parker to the ground, causing...
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If an NBA player is not going to get what he wants out of the Lig, he might just hop overseas. Atlanta Hawks swingman Josh Childess is seriously considering playing in Greece this upcoming season. The move would send shockwaves throughout the NBA and the ripple effect might cause the NBA team owners...
Read more »
I wanted to do something like this awhile ago. What I was doing, though, was taking comments, good, bad, or ugly, noting them then commenting on the comments. There got to be so many, and my comments were so long that it might have taken up to six hours to complete the chore.
But yesterday one of the...
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