Register date doesn't mean a lot. I have been following the Rockets before Hakeem got his 1st ring. I am sure many who registered before me were in Kindgarden at that time.
Most fans are fans for a certain team AND certain players, they are not mutually exclusive. Some are team fan 1st, some are player fan 1st, but "X-player-only fan" is a mystery to me. Any rational person would know that the mark of a player's success is his team's success. You need to understand that not all NBA fans who live in cities with NBA franchises, and many people are mobile who do not live in one city, one area for their whole live. For those fans, it is difficult to grow a firm bond with a particular franchise but it doesn't mean they are less loyal people. And for them, it is easier to relate certain players personality, etc to themselves. Personally, I am both a team fan and player fan. For college sports, I am a fan for U of Oregon, and to a lesser degree, PAC10. For professional sports, I am a players fan. Clyde, Hakeen, Allen Iverson, Ming, Jeremy are my favorite players. I have no idea why some people have a problem with it. As for the racial argument, it is simply stupid. You can be pride of your atheletic prowess, I am pride of my academic achievement, there is no need to put down anyone who is different from you.
Remember that most White Americans trace their ancestry to countries like England, Germany, and the Scandinavian countries, which are European countries with tall people. If the White American population was comprised more of people with French, Spaniards, Italians, and Portuguese descent, then your average White American would be smaller. Looking at the chart that you provided, one can see that the average Southern European man is basically the same height as an average Korean man. Chinese men, especially those in the North, would probably be bigger too if there was less poverty and less income inequality in China. Same thing with India. Most Indian-American guys seem to be pretty big, but the average height in India and Pakistan is really short. And when I was in Korea, there'd be nights when I'd go out and in the midst of a busy metro station, it seemed like every other guy was over 6 ft. tall.
i joined dec 02, and i would say that yao only fan was the first x only fan. also at the same time steve francis was very polarizing and some people were being accused of being s only fans for defending him i just happened to joined, wasn't really into the message board thing before then
PhiSlamma, These guys think the 99ers are a registration date.hahahahaha the 99ers are not just Rockets fans, thats a given, they're just real.
Olajuwon got me interested in the rockets when we won a couple of titles but I was just a little boy back then. I live in a country where basketball isn't a popular sport (sweden) so I forgot about basketball. But then one day in junior high I got a copy of NBA 2k for dreamcast. Littlle by little I got hooked up again with the rockets. From being a normal rocket fan I suddenly became a diehard fan as I discovered the talent of a certain Steve Francis. I also grow to love NBA and basketball as a sport. I even began playing basketball! As my interest for the rockets grow and grow I came across clutchfans.net and come to contact with the forum which made me love the team even more. Since then I've been following the rockets every day! So what I know is that I feel love for this team and the orgsanisation around it and I will never have a change of heart no matter whoever we get or trade!
Moved to Houston in 93 from Hawaii and started following the Rockets at one of the greatest times ever! That block on Starks was my favorite. But yea you 99ers are cool. I would've registered back then instead of lurking but I was too busy doing high school stuff you know, like hanging out, parties, and hitting on girls etc...
This is the crux of the problem with these forums. And it's nice that someone in the Lin group admits it. Because the bolded is 100% true. It's toxic to discussions when they're not even fans of basketball.
What? Steve Francis is always nerfed in video games. You just can cross up and blow by a computer like you can the real thing. And they teleport in front of you to stop you from dunking.
It's a universal phenomenon, and part of what happens when a sport expands its fanbase. I have seen the same thing with Tiger Woods, for example. People who don't care about golf otherwise and will only watch when Tiger plays. There seems to be a vicarious element to it for such fans, as if Tiger is them and they are Tiger. I would imagine that Jeremy Lin has a similar effect for his fans. I don't think there is a real way around this, particularly for pioneers in a sport. If there were a lot more African-American golfers, there might be less attachment to Tiger Woods from some of his fans. Similarly, if there were more Asian-American NBA players, there might be less attachment to Jeremy Lin from some of his fans. As a sport grows and new people come to view and participate in it, this is probably an inevitable part of the "growing pains" process.
The difference is Tiger was actually great at his sport and deserved the praise. And not to mention the sport he plays is an individual sport, not a team sport. And Tiger Woods fans don't cry foul whenever Tiger fails. They don't start calling everybody racist to excuse whatever shortcomings Tight may have. They don't tear everyone around him just so Tiger's viewed in a more positive light. There's this prevailing attitude around here among Lin fans that Lin is a great player and that anyone who thinks otherwise is a troll when the fact is he's not a great player. He's not even an average one IMO. He's just plain bad. And why should they attach themselves to players based on race? I don't get it to be honest. Are they that weak-minded? Really, it's confirming the stereotypes we already have about Asians.
It doesn't matter if Tiger is great. The attachment is still the same, and probably would be even if Tiger wasn't great. In fact, in the last several years when Tiger has struggled, the attachment by some fans has been at least as great, if not greater. Again, I'm not sure why people attach themselves to others based on race. If you want a real answer to that question, maybe you could ask some of the Tiger fans who only watch golf when he plays? Regardless of his ranking or performance. I have seen this often, fans who will say "well, I won't have to watch this tournament the rest of the weekend now that Tiger missed the cut." I have seen many people on message boards called racist if they criticized Tiger Woods. Again, to me this seems a universal situation. It didn't surprise me in Tiger's case, and it doesn't surprise me in Lin's case. I think it is pretty normal given the circumstances. And I think things will change in the future, when there are more African-American golfers and more Asian-American ballers.
Do you see any future African-American golfers and more Asian-American ballers? Because I don't. You can't fix the problem by pretending it doesn't exist.
Yeah, I see more of both groups. Tiger caused a boom in African-American interest in golf. That will have an effect. Even if it takes awhile to show itself. Similarly, the NBA is gaining in popularity in Asian countries and apparently among Asian-Americans. Which means it will only be a matter of time until you see the next Yao or Lin.
