Sunday, August 15, 2004 Sayson: Lovable defector By Homer Sayson Second overtime
CHICAGO – With the Olympics in full swing, fellow Sun.Star Cebu columnist John Pages opens today’s Sunday e-mail sermon, err, session. John, who writes as passionately as he plays tennis, trains the spotlight on basketball, strafing Dream Team IV with a plethora of questions:
“With NBA talents as deep as the players’ multi-million dollar pockets, why weren’t better players sent? Did Americans forget that the Olympics is once every four years, the world’s grandest event, and with their reputation at stake?
“It wouldn’t matter if the US wins more gold than any other country at the end of the Games, what will matter is if they lose that basketball gold. That will be the story of Athens’ 04. You think this was a case of overconfidence? Do they have enough time to iron it all out, and win?”
USA basketball wanted to send only the best, inviting the likes of Shaq, Kobe, J-Kidd, T-Mac, Vince Carter and company to don America’s colors in Greece. Unfortunately, the aforementioned stars opted to stay home, offering more alibis than O.J. Simpson.
The NBA’s elite didn’t forget the Olympics; they just don’t care anymore, John. And the fact that we now live in a world of terror gives them a legitimate excuse to ditch the run for gold. As for reputation, they don’t care either, John. To these mega-rich cogs, money, bling-bling, and nightlife matter more than patriotism via basketball.
I honestly don’t know if Dream Team IV had bought enough time to develop golden che-mistry. But I’m betting that the US team’s individual talents are good enough to parry the collective strength of the rest of the world.
Speaking of the Dream Team, Glenn Senorin (grss1982@yahoo.com) also wrote: “With all the whining about the inability of Team USA to defend the trey, is there still a chance of winning the gold in Athens. I mean most teams in Athens are European and they depend heavily on the three for their offense.”
Overall defense, not just defense on the small forward position, is a major concern for Team USA. Larry Brown is not exactly coaching the Pistons this time around. Still, Dream Team IV has the size, the quickness and the speed to dominate. On defense, they can mix up with man-to-man or a solid zone. Like I said, I think they’re gonna be just fine.
DEFECTOR. Two dudes resented the fact that I have moved my cheering tent from Los Angeles
to San Antonio. Thomas Yap (pynchon55@yahoo.com) said, “After showing your true colors again as a lowly bandwagoner, I wonder how long it’ll take for you to ditch the Spurs at the first sign of futility and adversity like you previously did when you previously rooted for Chicago and LA.”
First of all, I’d like to thank Thomas for introducing me to “bandwagoner,” a word I couldn’t find in the dictionary. Secondly, I’d like to tell him that I will drop the Spurs like a bad habit anytime I please. That’s the beauty of a democracy. In my life loyalty is priceless, but in my sporting world, loyalty is non-exclusive. For now, my NBA flavor-of-the-season is Tim Duncan. Whether you like it, or not.
Joyet Esmero (johnfarleyesmero@yahoo.com), “You hated and blamed Kobe for imploding something so nice. Why don’t you stop making him as an excuse for your well-planned migration plot...But I must admit, my enthusiasm for Second Overtime has doubly increased now that you’ve become a Laker-hater. A critic or an ally, you fit as a chameleon, your wit is as irresistible as axe, it never fails to amuse me, and like Kobe Bryant, you’re a dude I hate to love.”
Hate to love? Huh, you sound like my ex-girlfriends, Joyet. But unlike my exes, I’m glad you want to come back for more.
SK CHAIR. Karl Suarez (kalr)arjay@yahoo.com), SK chair of Barangay Bulacao, says, “Fascination for your work is endless. Sometimes you get ridiculed for what you write but you inspire many people like me. Sun.Star is a better paper because of your metaphors. By the way, is Kobe really that bad?”
Sun.Star Cebu was already No.1 long before I came, Karl, and that is why I’m happy to be here, some sort of a “bandwagoner.” If you think my metaphors add luster to the sports pages, I am flattered.
As for Kobe, no he ain’t really that bad. He’s just selfish, conniving, back-stabbing, and of course, a ball-hogger.
Mark Edison Rodriguez (mark05116@yahoo.com) obviously missed my official announcement last week to become a Spurs fan when he asked, “What team will you be rooting for next season?” But he had other questions, like “what’s the latest in the NBA?”
Well, there’s been a lot Mark. And if you want to cope with all of the NBA goings-on, just log on to NBA.com. There are also two other options: Read Second Overtime four times a week and listen to my NBA segment at dyAB every Friday with Leo Lastimosa.
LAST WORDS. Jesus Peralta (jap31122@yahoo.com) asks, “Why do you say that the match-up
between Manny Pacquiao and Erik Morales is miles away?”
That’s because not even one letter of the fight’s contract has been typed yet. As the Italians say, kapish?
Finally from xavismao21@yahoo.com, “In relation to the Peja Stoja-kovic scenario, C-Webb has no right to tell that some of his teammates were soft. The truth is, he is the one responsible for the downfall of the Kings when he returned from his injury. He disrupted the flow of the Kings, who held the best record despite his absence.”
Amen.
(e-mail: homsay@hotmail.com)
(August 15, 2004 issue) Write letter to the editor.Click here. Join the Sun.Star message board.Click here.
