2437 replies to this topic

[Mooch]

Sigworthy:

On Simmons' admission that out of the top 25 greatest moments in his life, Bird was involved in seven of them: "You need to get a better life."

[Red(s)HawksFan]

I haven't listened to the podcast yet, but I can't help but expect it will be a 40-45 minute version of the old Chris Farley Show skit on SNL.

"Umm, do you remember that time you, umm, hit that shot against the Hawks, and umm, beat them. That was awesome."

[Rook05]

The Bird podcast was excellent. Simmons did a good job of giving Larry enough space to do the heavy lifting. It leaves you wanting more.

[ifmanis5]

Liked the post-SB column a lot and the Bird podcast was excellent. Two best things he's done in ages.

[Clears Cleaver]

This Bird podcast is great. I wish it was three hours

[DegenerateSoxFan]

Love how Bird said that if he wanted more crowd noise the following night, he'd just call Bob Ryan and have him write that he wan't happy with the fans. That's beyond awesome

[Trlicek's Whip]

Curator, for lack of a term that doesn't piss off SOSH.

D-Lew on Roids HATES this word.

Edited by Trlicek's Whip, 10 February 2012 - 01:32 PM.

[Dusty Pagoda]

The Bird podcast was tremendous.

Loved hearing Larry's recollections and it was great to hear how good his memory is - instantly recalling every moment Bill brought up, the story about watching old games and knowing what would happen next, etc. Also the new wrinkle about how he possibly would have retired sooner if Bias had lived (which threw a wrench into one of Bill's patented What If? narratives). Larry has such a great knowledge of the game, past and present, too bad he doesn't do more stuff like this. "You need to get a better life." AWESOME.

Man this was great. Wish it was 40 hours long.

[PBDWake]

Gotta say, the pushing of Anderson Varejao to be a starter for the All Star game was kind of silly.

I love the way Varejao is playing this season … and if you enjoy guys who put up 11 points and 12 rebounds every night, grab every big rebound in traffic, take monster charges again and again and shut down opposing big guys, you should, too. Isn't the whole point of the All-Star Game to pick players who are playing as well as they can possibly play? I never watch Chris Bosh and say, "Whoa, Chris Bosh! He's something! He's really turned it on!" Why do I have to pick Bosh as a starter again? And also, why should THREE Miami Heat players be starting on the All-Star team? You don't find this a little kooky? Are they the '96 Bulls or something? Please. Besides, Varejao has been more of an impact player this year — he's the best at what he does, and that's saying something. You win with what he does.

Not necessarily campaigning for Chris Bosh, but... He's playing as well as he can play is not a valid argument. James Posey frequently played as well he possibly could. Same with JJ Barea, Kendrick Perkins, and any host of players from suck to all star candidates. What matters is whether that output is All Star caliber. Admittedly, this is a down year for PF in the Eastern Conference and he might deserve to make the team, but I'd rather see Ryan Anderson or Josh Smith in as a starter if you're not taking Bosh (and you're using the "It needs to be a PF, don't just start two SFs since they're both "forwards" logic). It's just the argument that is flawed to me. Especially the last line. Which really should read "You win (at a .385 clip) with what he does"

[JimD]

Sorry if I'm a little late to the party with this. I thought Bill's post SB column was great. It was vintage Simmons - when most of the local columnists were seemingly either piling on or lecturing us, here was a guy who gets excatly how I was feeling:

This was a night that made you say, "Why does this matter to me so much? Isn't it fundamentally stupid that this matters so much?" This was a night when you try to keep everything in perspective by going through the checklist of reasons why you shouldn't be depressed — "Are my kids healthy?" (CHECK) "Do I love my significant other?" (CHECK) "Are my parents still alive and healthy?" (CHECK) "Do I like my job?" (CHECK) "Do I have a good group of friends?" (CHECK) — and just by doing that, you feel like the biggest moron on the planet.

I have never been able to answer the question, "Why does this matter to me so much?" That's just the way it's always been. Ever since I can remember. You get older, your life changes, your friends change, your house changes, family members start dying, your kids start morphing into miniature people … and yet, one thing never changes for anyone who truly cares about sports. See, there's no feeling quite like watching your team blowing a big game. It's devastating. It's paralyzing. It's the only feeling that a 6-year-old, a 42-year-old and a 64-year-old can share exactly. You never get over it. You never stop thinking about the three or four plays that could have swung the game.

[sibpin]

Varejao is having a great fantasy season and was putting up top-20 numbers for the month before his injury. I'd put money on Simmons having either him or Irving on his fantasy team, you know, if gambling were legal.

[NatetheGreat]

Has their ever been an athlete better suited to play in the same town as the guys who write the NY Post's headlines? He's made for puns.

Puttin the MSG Back in the Garden
Super Lintendo
Virtual Linsanity
Born to Lin
Lin or Go Home
“LINNING” (said in Charlie Sheen voice)
Linning and Grinning
Crouching Tiger Hidden Point Guard
Linsane in the Membrane
Linto the Wild
For the Lin
Lin City
Original Lin
All I Do is Lin
Linconcievable
The Linstigator
The Linsulin Shot
Way of the Linja


its endless...

[Super Nomario]

Simmons needs to go back and read the article where he said LeBron should sign with Chicago before he spends half a mailbag talking about how LeBron was an idiot not to sign with New York.

[natpastime162]

Simmons needs to go back and read the article where he said LeBron should sign with Chicago before he spends half a mailbag talking about how LeBron was an idiot not to sign with New York.

Does he really believe "LeBron's shadow lingers over all of it" in the Jeremy Lin story? I mean, outside of Knick's fans and people who follow the NBA, I'm not sure people even know how huge basketball is in MSG, let alone care.

Sure, LeBron might be kicking himself, but the average fan doesn't hear about and watch Jeremy Lin and then think "what if LeBron signed in NY?"

[Grin&MartyBarret]

Simmons needs to go back and read the article where he said LeBron should sign with Chicago before he spends half a mailbag talking about how LeBron was an idiot not to sign with New York.

Simmons cares not for what past Simmons said. He also wrote that Greg Oden deserved to be the number 1 overall pick after watching the national championship game that year, but something small like that isn't gonna keep him from claiming that he supported Durant from day 1.

[drleather2001]

Does he really believe "LeBron's shadow lingers over all of it" in the Jeremy Lin story? I mean, outside of Knick's fans and people who follow the NBA, I'm not sure people even know how huge basketball is in MSG, let alone care.

Sure, LeBron might be kicking himself, but the average fan doesn't hear about and watch Jeremy Lin and then think "what if LeBron signed in NY?"

Well it's stupid because Lin represents everything that LeBron James isn't. He's an out-of-nowhere success story, a cindarella, and (due to his ethnicity), frankly a bit of a novelty. LeBron's entry in the NYC scene would have carried with it completely opposite expectations, and hence the reactions of the fans and media would be completely different.

Jesus.

Edited by drleather2001, 17 February 2012 - 01:03 PM.

[DrewDawg]

Just reading it now--did Ben Wallace "explode" in Orlando? He averaged 8 boards a game there, practically the same as the prior year in DC, then went to Detroit and and jumped to 13+ boards a game. Ehh, I'm bored.

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

I read that and wondered the same thing too. I guess it's one of those classic Bill Simmons brain farts.

[A Bartlett Giamatti]

Well it's stupid because Lin represents everything that LeBron James isn't. He's an out-of-nowhere success story, a cindarella, and (due to his ethnicity), frankly a bit of a novelty. LeBron's entry in the NYC scene would have carried with it completely opposite expectations, and hence the reactions of the fans and media would be completely different.

Jesus.

Bill's point simply wasn't explained well. I don't think he's comparing the two. He's saying that in the arc of NBA history, The Decision is far more important than a kid coming off the bench and igniting his team. That could have easily been written in a better way that explains how he believes Linsanity illuminates what could have been for Lebron. However, in his laziness he had to say it as "Lebron Hangs Over Everything."

[The Social Chair]

I dont even know where to begin with that column today. The Celtics have been well over the cap since they traded for KG, what did he expect Ainge to be able to do except gamble with late first round picks and minimum vet contracts?

I can't believe he is still railing against the Rasheed signing after Rasheed came through in the playoffs. Simmons two biggest talking points about the Celtics in the last 5 years were 1) Doc cant coach (07-08) 2) Rasheed was a horrible signing and destroyed the season (09-10). Both were proven untrue but he still seems to be sticking with the latter.

He also still thinks the Perk trade was bad? Has he seen Perk play the last 12 months? Does he know how overpaid he is by OKC?

So basically he spends 95% of the article bashing Ainge for his moves, and then comes to the conclusion that the solution is to make a bunch of awful trades? huh?

Simmons delusional belief that he could be an NBA GM makes these kind of columns unbearable to me.

[Three10toLeft]

I dont even know where to begin with that column today. The Celtics have been well over the cap since they traded for KG, what did he expect Ainge to be able to do except gamble with late first round picks and minimum vet contracts?

I can't believe he is still railing against the Rasheed signing after Rasheed came through in the playoffs. Simmons two biggest talking points about the Celtics in the last 5 years were 1) Doc cant coach (07-08) 2) Rasheed was a horrible signing and destroyed the season (09-10). Both were proven untrue but he still seems to be sticking with the latter.

He also still thinks the Perk trade was bad? Has he seen Perk play the last 12 months? Does he know how overpaid he is by OKC?

So basically he spends 95% of the article bashing Ainge for his moves, and then comes to the conclusion that the solution is to make a bunch of awful trades? huh?

Simmons delusional belief that he could be an NBA GM makes these kind of columns unbearable to me.

For some reason I found the article funny, the premise is kinda tired, but still worked well.

His thoughts on how Danny Ainge is killing this franchise are dubious at best. Other than the whiff on Deandre Jordan, I don't really see anything worth killing Ainge over. Maybe we'd be singing a different tune if Rasheed had been determined to cash in on those final two years on his deal, but that point is moot.

In one breath he kills Ainge for trading Perkins and killing Rondo's morale, while a few paragraphs later he urges Ainge to trade Rondo because he isn't a player you can build around. So what is it, Bill?

The hedge on Shaq being healthy come playoff time was pretty dumb of Ainge, but the notion that the Celtics, as constructed at the time, were going to be able to compete with the Heat in the playoffs without a solid edition to the backcourt to alleviate some minutes from Ray/Pierce was ridiculous. Without Perk they lost in 5 games to the Heat. With Perk they probably lose in 6, at best.

The part of the column that really made it hard for me to keep my breakfast down was the idea of trading Ray/KG/Rondo for the group of Marion/Odom/Gasol/Mo Williams

What?

Odom has been a missing person for this entire NBA season. You can't build a team around Pau, and Marion is great on the defensive end but a complimentary piece at best. Paul Pierce isn't the Pierce of old, he can't be expected to be THE GUY anymore, and that's the role he would be forced in to if those deals were made.

Simmons clearly stated that treading water in no man's land is the worst thing an NBA team can do. That's EXACTLY what the Celtics would be doing with a starting 5 like that... Probably good enough for a fifth seed in the east, but an early first round exit. Thanks, but no thanks.

I'd rather let the season play out, if a contending team is willing to give up anything of value for Ray, then do it. Other than that, let the chips fall where they may. Hope that this team bottoms out, maybe with an injury to Rondo we can get in to the lottery. Get a high draft pick, relinquish ourselves of these monstrous contracts and make a run at Deron Williams or Dwight Howard. Nab one of the two, and you probably have a shot at some other solid role players.

I would rather watch this team become a joke in the league than to watch sustained .500 basketball and know each season was going to end with just a quick cup of coffee in the playoffs.

[nattysez]

He also still thinks the Perk trade was bad? Has he seen Perk play the last 12 months? Does he know how overpaid he is by OKC?

Didn't read the column, but it sounds like he also ignored the Big Baby trade, which was a clear win. Of course, facts like these would've ruined the premise for the column, so they're ignored.

The appropriate column for someone who fashions himself an elite NBA writer would have been a meditation on "blowing it up," the Celtics of the nineties, whether fans will be willing to watch a "blown up"/rebuilding team, and how crucial it is for Ainge to make the right moves in the coming weeks to avoid a lot of bad years in the future. A skilled writer could make a column like that funny.

[ifmanis5]

Reading this now- it's a clusterfrack of weirdness. Bill's take is 'Danny is terrible! So, here are my even wayyy worser suggestions!'
If this was done in a clever way it would actually be funny.

[jose melendez]

That maybe the worst basketball column he's ever written. There is literally nothing he criticizes Danny for that he doesn't then propose doing later.

1. Earlier: He tried to trade everyone and ruined team chemistry--Later: Trade, Rondo, KG, Ray and anyone else but Pierce.
2. Earlier: There's no place in the NBA that's worse to be than no man's land: Later: If we make 8 million trades we could be a scary six seed (this year).
3. Earlier: Wilcox and whoever else suck, and are about to becoming nothing more than expiring contracts. LAter: Expiring contracts are valuable commodities and we should trade them all.

Not to mention that it wasn't funny, wasn't clever and relied on a terrible comic concept. There's plenty to be upset about with this Cs team. Frankly, I am embarassed for him.

[ifmanis5]

Agreed with above and even more damning, Bill always preaches that you never want to be in the middle in the NBA- The Milwaukee Bucks Zone. But Bill's rebuilding plan- 'Gasol, Brandon Bass, Marion, Pierce and Mo Williams as starters, with Odom, Wilcox, Pietrus and Bradley as your first four subs' puts them squarely in that zone for quite some time. Bill Simmons would hate that Bill Simmons plan!

[Jeff Van GULLY]

Shocked at how bad a column that was. His selective amnesia on the Celtics cap situation since acquiring KG and Allen is unforgivable.

Plus, I didn't find the premise funny or entertaining at all. Just brutal.

[gammoseditor]

Agreed with all of the above. I also thought the insults to Ordway in the beginning were petty and not funny. I'm sure he has some grudge, and Ordway is a mediocre to bad local radio host, but if you're a successful national writer it seems low class to be taking those shots. I could understand if they were funny, but they really weren't.

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

I thought that Jeffrey Ross would tell better jokes.

[Jed Zeppelin]

Stopped reading it when he referenced DeAndre Jordan aka the guy that every team passed on.

And from these posts it appears I made the right decision.

Edited by Jed Zeppelin, 23 February 2012 - 03:11 PM.

[PBDWake]

Agreed with all of the above. I also thought the insults to Ordway in the beginning were petty and not funny. I'm sure he has some grudge, and Ordway is a mediocre to bad local radio host, but if you're a successful national writer it seems low class to be taking those shots. I could understand if they were funny, but they really weren't.

I can't think of a drive time (Morning or Afternoon) Boston show, except maybe Felger?, he hasn't levied some sort of bitter comment in an article, podcast, or tweet about how they're jealous of him and how they stab him in the back by going after him to go on the show, then make fun of him and his articles on air. I know he's had it out with Ordway, D+C, and T+R pretty publicly, and has swapped sides on the TSH/EEI war a couple of times. For a guy who is pretty careless about keeping up with the hometown teams at times, he's pretty damn invested in what the hometown stations say about him

Edited by PBDWake, 23 February 2012 - 03:20 PM.

[johnmd20]

Shocked at how bad a column that was. His selective amnesia on the Celtics cap situation since acquiring KG and Allen is unforgivable.

Plus, I didn't find the premise funny or entertaining at all. Just brutal.

I hated the premise and it was made worse by the horrendousness of what was written. I think Simmons has had 2 columns that were actually great since Grantland started. I also think 75% of what he's written has had a gimmick like this past one or like the mailbags. There is no original thought to anything he comes up with.

Thankfully his Podcasts have been solid.

[BS_SoxFan]

I gave up as soon as I came to the "slim pickings" for Celtics fans since 2008. Yup, they only came within a quarter of lousy play and a miracle Ron Artest 3 from winning a 2nd title with this group. What a piece of shit column.

[jose melendez]

2010 was also spectacularly enjoyable. And 2009 they were well on their way to a repeat until KG got hurt, and still played two incredibly entertaining series. And the first half in 2011 they played great ball.

Truth be told, I kind of resent him for continuing to live in LA. He went out there for work--nothing wrong with that--but now it's completely irrelevant to his work. He could do his job from anywhere in the country and his kids aren't in school yet and that's where he chooses (yes, I have no idea what his wife does). There's a big element of the big time athlete story in him-- he makes it big and flees for the bright lights and good weather. So many reporters suck because they can't relate to the athletes and resent them--I kind of wonder if his problem is that he can relate.

I think he's very good at the podcasts, I enjoy them immensley and he used to really enjoy his column, and now enjoy a few of them, but this piece is such blatant shit stirring.

[CJM]

2010 was also spectacularly enjoyable. And 2009 they were well on their way to a repeat until KG got hurt, and still played two incredibly entertaining series. And the first half in 2011 they played great ball.

Truth be told, I kind of resent him for continuing to live in LA. He went out there for work--nothing wrong with that--but now it's completely irrelevant to his work. He could do his job from anywhere in the country and his kids aren't in school yet and that's where he chooses (yes, I have no idea what his wife does). There's a big element of the big time athlete story in him-- he makes it big and flees for the bright lights and good weather. So many reporters suck because they can't relate to the athletes and resent them--I kind of wonder if his problem is that he can relate.

I think he's very good at the podcasts, I enjoy them immensley and he used to really enjoy his column, and now enjoy a few of them, but this piece is such blatant shit stirring.

I don't resent him for continuing to live in L.A. Seems like the sort of thing that you can't critique a person for.

What does increasingly bother me is that he still represents himself as some sort of paragon or embodiment of New England fandom. It used to ring true, fan's p.o.v and all that, but now seems dishonest and tired. He occasionally runs into a wheelhouse column, like the post-Super Bowl one, but many of his sweeping comments about New England sports ring hollow, and his "Sports Suffering Whisperer" was embarrassing.

This out-of-touchness is most evident in his columns about baseball and the Red Sox: baseball has never been his forte, and now that the 'regional tortured psyche' thing has immutably changed, he's seemingly had nothing worthy to say.

[The Social Chair]

2010 was also spectacularly enjoyable. And 2009 they were well on their way to a repeat until KG got hurt, and still played two incredibly entertaining series. And the first half in 2011 they played great ball.

Truth be told, I kind of resent him for continuing to live in LA. He went out there for work--nothing wrong with that--but now it's completely irrelevant to his work. He could do his job from anywhere in the country and his kids aren't in school yet and that's where he chooses (yes, I have no idea what his wife does). There's a big element of the big time athlete story in him-- he makes it big and flees for the bright lights and good weather. So many reporters suck because they can't relate to the athletes and resent them--I kind of wonder if his problem is that he can relate.

I think he's very good at the podcasts, I enjoy them immensley and he used to really enjoy his column, and now enjoy a few of them, but this piece is such blatant shit stirring.

The Grantland offices are at LA Live. I don't think he could just pick up and move, and I also don't think you know enough info about his life to critique where he chooses to live. There are many factors that could play into it.

[Clears Cleaver]

After the Super bowl, everyone lauded his column for representing exactly how every Pats fan felt.

He also mentioned the Big Baby trade and the promise of the last few draft picks.

And the premise of the column is to suggest what Ainge should do, which is trade away Ray and KG and Rondo. His reasoning is that there is no way the Celtics will ever get a top FA to sign with them when Dallas, NJ, LA have cap space. And he is right.

The style of the column kinda sucked, except for the Heinson parts. I LOL'd several times.

[SydneySox]

Without defending the column, because the premise is stupid and most of the insults he levels at people are lazy, cruel and sloppy, his criticising the Perk trade, then suggesting more trades aren't contradictions. He is suggesting:

Perk was traded; it killed the chemistry (he alleges and it looks basically true but who knows).

Therefore, though you never would have done it were Perk still around, we're now at a point where you may as well trade everyone.

This isn't the same thing as saying 'You can't trade a Perk' but 'you can trade a Rondo'. I imagine Simmons would say he'd argue a different route had Perkins not been traded away.

[ifmanis5]

One more note from me on this- Simmons killing Danny for passing on Deandre Jordan in 2008. Here's Simmons' 2008 Draft Diary:

By the way, I'm torn on DeAndre Jordan for the Celtics at No. 30 -- a lottery talent with no heart at all, but someone who might be redeemed by going to Kevin Garnett College and getting a double major in woofing and chest-pounding. He's like the gift nobody wants to end up with in a $25 Yankee Christmas swap: A potential keeper until you realize you also have to pay for $20 worth of batteries to make the gift work, so you're better off just passing it to someone else. Did that even make sense? I feel like that made sense. I need to wrap this up soon.

Cool story, bro.

[fairlee76]

Simmons poking fun at Ordway is amusing. Not sure which one to take less seriously as a media personality. Not sure what else to say about that joke of a column.

[JimD]

I suspect Bill lives in LA because he's at least as big a pop culture maven as he is a sports fan, and because in no other city is his status as a minor celebrity going to be rewarded the way it will be in Southern California.

[kenneycb]

I suspect Bill lives in LA because he's at least as big a pop culture maven as he is a sports fan, and because in no other city is his status as a minor celebrity going to be rewarded the way it will be in Southern California.

Or because he moved out there for a job and liked it and decided to stay out there. But your reasoning is a lot more sound.

[drleather2001]

On a side note, isn't the "Cool Story, Bro" meme supposed to apply only when someone is, you know, telling a story or claiming something happened? Not when someone is expressing an opinion? An opinion isn't a story.

[Three10toLeft]

Or because he moved out there for a job and liked it and decided to stay out there. But your reasoning is a lot more sound.

Yeah, this guy isn't journalist. He doesn't have to cover a beat for any Boston team, and typically the only time he really writes about a Boston team is when the wheels are falling off or they are playing in a playoff/championship game.

I can't fault him for living in LA. Hell, if I was given that opportunity, I would take it in a heartbeat.

[fairlee76]

Or because he moved out there for a job and liked it and decided to stay out there. But your reasoning is a lot more sound.

I have no problem with his decision to move to LA. I can definitely see the appeal of that area from a quality of life POV. What annoys me is his continuing to pretend that he speaks for Boston fans or has his hand on the pulse of what is going on in this market. Though I suppose the fact that his columns only pop up when a local team is either collapsing or playing for a title makes him similar to the interest level of more than a few local fans.

I know this has been posted before, but I am torn about Simmons. I loved his stuff 10+ years ago and feel as though I still read his columns because of what he used to represent to me, which was a creative and unique take on sports and pop culture.

[PBDWake]

Where I fault him isn't for wanting to live in a nice city with his buddies that's fun to hang out in and live with his family in, and works for him nicely on a professional level. It's criticizing athletes for doing the same thing that bugs me.

[drleather2001]

What's interesting to me is that I think non-Boston fans actually tolerate Simmons' schtick better than Boston fans.

Ironically, the ones I associate with (some moderate-heavy sports fans from places like Denver, Atlanta, Minnesota, and North Carolina) also think I'm some sort of anomaly when I say that, in fact, I'm easily annoyed by him and generally don't pay attention anymore. They think I'm butt-hurt because he left Boston, which isn't the case at all. It's that he won't shut up about Boston.

Edited by drleather2001, 24 February 2012 - 10:12 AM.

[redsahx]

The first time he used this gimmick/format in a column, "The atrocious GM summit", it was funny. This time it was old.

My main gripe with Simmons now is when he tries to explain Boston fans to the country at large, despite the fact that he hasn't lived here for almost a decade. I don't really want to be associated with the caricature of a Boston fan that Simmons paints either.

[The Social Chair]

Without defending the column, because the premise is stupid and most of the insults he levels at people are lazy, cruel and sloppy, his criticising the Perk trade, then suggesting more trades aren't contradictions. He is suggesting:

Perk was traded; it killed the chemistry (he alleges and it looks basically true but who knows).

Therefore, though you never would have done it were Perk still around, we're now at a point where you may as well trade everyone.

This isn't the same thing as saying 'You can't trade a Perk' but 'you can trade a Rondo'. I imagine Simmons would say he'd argue a different route had Perkins not been traded away.

Simmons would kill any GM that traded expiring deals and a young PG for a bunch of over paid veteran non-All Stars. So he is suggesting shitty trades after criticising a mediocre one.

[Three10toLeft]

The podcasts he's been pumping out during the all star break have been pretty awesome so far.

The one with Dirk was really good, I don't really know much about Dave Cowens or that era, so I can't really comment on it.

It was entertaining to hear Ric Bucher kind of call BS out for still playing the 'Boston Sports Guy' card, while being a national writer at this point.

I kind of wish he would allow Joe House to take part a little more though. He seems to have good questions lined up whenever he gets his lone shot to speak during these interviews.

[BigSoxFan]

Stopped reading it when he referenced DeAndre Jordan aka the guy that every team passed on.

And from these posts it appears I made the right decision.

It was a lackluster column but I agree with Simmons' point. Danny had a raw talent sitting in his lap and passed on him (or Chalmers) for JR Giddens. He fucked up.