Mike Golic Going Off...

[terpkristin]

Did anybody hear Mike Golic of Mike & Mike going off on the New York Knicks young players whining about how they weren't getting told "good job" enough and that's why they weren't motivated to play under Larry Brown? He did it on the Thursday episode towards the end of the show, then they also replayed some of it on this morning's show.

I quite agreed with his rant, that these guys want WAY TOO MUCH coddling and that if that is the pervasive attitude in the Knicks franchise, that squad has infinitely more problems than a crappy record. I have to wonder, though, is this unique to the Knicks or are all athletes of "this generation" (the generation that has come up in the era when people seem to be more about coddling the kids--participation awards, etc) bigger pansies than athletes of previous generations?

Anybody?
/tk

[WSUCougar]

Originally Posted by terpkristin

or are all athletes of "this generation" (the generation that has come up in the era when people seem to be more about coddling the kids--participation awards, etc) bigger pansies than athletes of previous generations?

I don't think there's any question, really. There have always been coddled athletes and prima donnas, but those qualities are greatly magnified by the massive popularity, vast media access, and huge salaries of today's pro sports.

[BrianD]

They sure seem to do their share of whining these days. Either the practices are too rough or people aren't paying enough attention to them. I'm not sure if it has to do with the culture of participation awards so much since it seems like so many pro athletes grew up in some pretty harsh environments, but it might have something to do with the way these guys are treated like such celebrities. They figure that once they get this far, they no longer have to work for their money.

[Franklinnoble]

He's just angry because his brother got that nice gig on Saved By The Bell: The College Years.

[Toddzilla]

Thats pretty silly, to be sure, but if the coach can't figure out how/what motivates his players, then he's got to shoulder most of the blame.

[Klinglerware]

Originally Posted by WSUCougar

I don't think there's any question, really. There have always been coddled athletes and prima donnas, but those qualities are greatly magnified by the massive popularity, vast media access, and huge salaries of today's pro sports.

A good point about the media coverage. I'm sure the intense media competition and blanket coverage breeds a more adversarial relationship between the media and sports figures. Babe Ruth wouldn't have gotten the same free pass from the media today for his indiscretions (gonorrhea, alcoholism, etc)...

[Subby]

It was pretty funny, as far as rants go.

Hopefully Schmidty and rendeR were listening.

[Greyroofoo]

If I was on the Knicks I'd be whining too

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by Greyroofoo

If I was on the Knicks I'd be whining too

No, if you were on the Knicks, you'd be collecting a fat NBA salary and would have nothing whatsoever to whine about.

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by terpkristin

Did anybody hear Mike Golic of Mike & Mike going off on the New York Knicks young players whining about how they weren't getting told "good job" enough and that's why they weren't motivated to play under Larry Brown? He did it on the Thursday episode towards the end of the show, then they also replayed some of it on this morning's show.

I quite agreed with his rant, that these guys want WAY TOO MUCH coddling and that if that is the pervasive attitude in the Knicks franchise, that squad has infinitely more problems than a crappy record. I have to wonder, though, is this unique to the Knicks or are all athletes of "this generation" (the generation that has come up in the era when people seem to be more about coddling the kids--participation awards, etc) bigger pansies than athletes of previous generations?

Anybody?
/tk

When you find a team that does not coddle its players, let me know.

[Schmidty]

Originally Posted by Subby

It was pretty funny, as far as rants go.

Hopefully Schmidty and rendeR were listening.

What I lack in hilarity, I make up for in irritating tenacity.

[terpkristin]

Originally Posted by miami_fan

When you find a team that does not coddle its players, let me know.

Maybe coddle was the wrong word. I can understand trying to keep your players happy. But a player being upset because he wasn't getting told he was doing a good job often enough (and based on the Knicks' record, nobody was doing a good job all that often...) is just ludicrous.

Granted, don't get me wrong, Larry Brown really didn't do his job in the least this past season with the Knicks. But if the main complaint from players is that he didn't tell them they were doing a good job often enough.... For what, 23 wins or something ridicuously awful like that...

Though the media things that have been mentioned here are something I kind of forgot about/take for granted. You don't hear players on the Wizards (who made it the playoffs but still haven't figured out how to put a complete game together) making those types of comments, and they don't have quite the payroll that the Knicks do.

/tk

[terpkristin]

Originally Posted by Subby

It was pretty funny, as far as rants go.

I concur. I was actually sick and half-asleep on the couch when he started ranting (he woke me up), so I ended up downloading the show (I'm an ESPN Insider) so I could hear the rant in full.

/tk

[M GO BLUE!!!]

The funniest quote is by Nate Robinson...

Originally Posted by Nate Robinson

He was trying to take my joy...

Yeah... I can just see Larry Brown sitting up at night devising the perfect scheme to take away his joy...

[Schmidty]

Originally Posted by M GO BLUE!!!

The funniest quote is by Nate Robinson...



Yeah... I can just see Larry Brown sitting up at night devising the perfect scheme to take away his joy...

Maybe Larry really liked almonds.






sorry.

[rowech]

I lost a high school soccer coaching job because I wouldn't coddle. My first year at the school, I brought in a totally different attitude. The players there bought into it and we improved our record from the previous year by 8 wins. I was named coach of the year.

Following year, we graduated many players and watched some young pups try and take the team...they were so bold as to even tell me they wanted to run their own drills instead of mine. Can you imagine? With the increased schedule I sought out to force our young guys to improve we struggled. I was removed with a parent petition.

Following season, using the exact same lineups I had setup, the exact same asst. coaches, etc. the team won districts again. Can't imagine what it's like watching someone else get all of the credit for your work.

[dawgfan]

Originally Posted by M GO BLUE!!!

The funniest quote is by Nate Robinson...



Yeah... I can just see Larry Brown sitting up at night devising the perfect scheme to take away his joy...

As someone who followed his college career, let me try and interpret a bit here. Nate is a guy that plays balls to the wall, full-energy and maximum emotion. He's hyper-competitive and as much as any athlete out there feeds off of his emotional state and the emotional state of those around him.

As part of his style of play, he will trash-talk your ears off and he'll go for the spectacular dunk or blocked shot, sometimes eschewing the safer play in favor of the more spectacular one.

That's how he plays, and it's a big part of the reason that he's gotten where he has. There's a very real chance that if you try to mold him into being a completely by the book kind of player that you'll lose the explosiveness that makes him effective. With Nate, you take the things that are bad (some showboating) because that same drive also fuels the good in his game.

Now, I'm not saying that Nate doesn't still have some maturing to do - he definitely does. But I think what Nate was talking about in that quote was the tendency of Brown to yell at Nate for what he considered showboating, and for having a perfectionist coaching personality that doesn't dole out positive reinforcement for things done well. When Nate scored 30-something points against Philly, Brown only chastised Nate for the fact that Iverson had 40-something. Nate is used to a more upbeat coach like Lorenzo Romar who not only criticized the things done wrong but also praised the things done right.