The irony is that when we don't attempt to control the narrative, we end up controlling the narrative against a nuclear superpower that suppresses it's own people.
It's always about the narrative, otherwise Lebron has the same case OP does almost every year for the last 15 years or so. This year I think there 4 things hurting James's case: #1 - Lakers and Bucks are way ahead of everyone else, we still can change that on the head to head matchups, but does not look promising. #2 - Style considerations: I think people really does not like our style. You have to respect that,, and I see it every time more vocally. Bill Simmons, Giannis on the All Star draft. #3 - Moody personality: Somehow the personality it's a factor. And James does not look so "close" to the media or his personality is not as reliable to those. #4 - Lillard: More likeable to Media Darlings and putting a hot streak is getting coverage that I haven't seen them give to James when he has his own. I spent years trying to think this was nonsense, but really, there is not the same love for us and James.
dunt think 'mvp title' or 'all-star starter' worth anything nowadays, only the label of winner or loser matters.
It absolutely comes down to narrative. Production is part of it, that narrows the field, but narrative is the end factor. We’ve seen it time and time again, and I’m not just talking about Harden years. I’m talking about Lebron snubs and Steve Nash winning twice, etc.
The only way for James at this point is to win no matter what. The question is will he be a better basketball player when it means most. That's the only way to shut these idiots up
I'm acknowledging that the narrative doesn't necessarily match up but that is how he is covered in the media - that's the box they put him in when describing him whether its accurate or not.
Yeah, I think that is what Morey has been attempting to do by tweeting stats supporting his team's case over the years but narrative is often not about the black and white numbers - it's more about the perception than the stats and Daryl probably does his team more of a disservice when he tries to make it about the cold hard facts. Not sure about Tilman, but judging from the businesses he owns, I would guess he is also a guy who is NOT on the cutting edge of modern PR tactics. ....think about when Nike had paid Kobe a zillion dollars and he got caught raping a girl - they had a huge problem on their hands trying to recoup an investment that was in imminent danger. Now I don't know if it was Kobe's PR team or Nike's but I distinctly remember the term "hater" entering the basketball lexicon seemingly overnight - all of a sudden everyone who spoke bad about Kobe or the Lakers was lumped in as a hater - it was a deliberate attempt to shut down meaningful conversation about Kobe's rape case by lumping in people who had an opinion about Kobe's ethics with those who didn't want to see the Lakers team win - it muddied the discourse and made it difficult to have a conversation about Kobe's criminal actions without being painted as someone also trying to see the Lakers fail. My point is if a good PR firm can make the negative public reaction to Kobe's known implication in a heinous crime he openly admitted it(his public apology admitted he thought it was consensual) go away, then a good PR firm can help Houston craft a better narrative for their team than 'also ran' stats nerds - always the bridesmaid, never the bride. I mean on record Houston has been one of the best teams of the last decade for christ sakes - yet people seem eager to remember San Antonio or Boston despite Houston being similarly successful over the same period.
Yup - totally true. Her could average a triple double the rest of his career and people still wouldn't care - he has to win and unfortunately that depends on A LOT of things completely outside of Harden's control- roster makeup, injury luck for himself AND his teammates, ref whistles, etc.
As far as the refs are concerned ant perceived push offs will be offensive foul calls against him unlike D. Mitchell who Pushed Rocov into the front seats and then drew a foul on P.J.
this is a league where kobe only won 1 mvps. LeBron is popularly considered the best player and has not won a MVP or been in serious discussion for one since 2013. its an meaningless award and once you fall out of the convo, you are done. he is in good company
Seriously if Harden wants more jewelry to hang on the wall then he can go buy it. He makes 38 million dollars. That's not something that is hung on rafters at toyota center or placed in a house of a former owner in Florida.... the city of Houston doesn't have an MVP parade. We have championship parades. That is all that matters. The trophy and the ring and a banner hanging from the rafters, which will probably be made out of used Landry's table cloth or j*zz stained sheets from the Golden Nuggets hotel room courtesy of Tillman's cheap @ss, is all that matters.
It's definitely a popularity contest. Personally the homerism has finally wore off, the dude just isn't a winner until he proves it.
