Oh my god i know i have to post this article in Spanish for now when i come back ill try to translate all of it, if someone finds it in english please help..... But its awesome this is an Open letter Larry Bird sent out to the Dream Team.... I found it in a Spanish Sports Paper but i think it was first taken from a USA paper ?? http://www.marca.com/edicion/noticia/0,2458,522911,00.html Larry Bird ataca el juego del Dream Team Eurosport, en su página web, desvela una carta abierta de Larry Bird al Dream Team. Se la reproducimos: "Mis queridos compatriotas: El de Puerto Rico será el último partido que vea de los Juegos. Hace ya varios años que vengo barruntando semejante medida. Os preguntaréis el porqué. Es sencillo. Lo que hacéis no es baloncesto. El basket americano ha quedado para hacer exhibiciones de mates y Aleey Hoops entre cuarto y cuarto. Y esto no es así. Recuerdo cuando comencé a jugar. Mis entrenadores insistían una y otra vez en los fundamentos. Aprendí a botar, a hace cambios de dirección, de reverso, a entrar a canasta por la derecha y por la izquierda, a encestar a aro pasado, a fintar, a tirar, a pasar y cortar...; luego, más tarde, me enseñaron a defender a mi rival, a ayudar a mis compañeros, a bloquear, a pasar por el medio cuando el bloquedado era yo. Era divertido, era el baloncesto total. Recuerdo que me gustaba estudiar al rival; saber si tenía preferencia a marcharse por la izquierda o por la derecha, si solía fintar o lanzar directamente, si tendía a pasar con una mano o con dos... Ahora, nada de eso existe. El baloncesto que practicáis es deplorable. Vuestra mayor satisfacción es un mate de espaldas e incluso estaría por asegurar que os sentís satisfechos cuando un compañero falla un tiro o pìerde un balón. Sóis egoístas, engreídos y vuestra idea dal basket pasa por saltar y tirar triples. El día que vuestro entrenador ¿os enseñó? el pase, la finta, el buscar al compañero mejor situado o algún concepto medianamente inteligente o no estabáis o -lo que es peor- no lo comprendistéis. Echo un vistazo a la actual NBA. De los mejores 20 jugadores, me salen unos cuantos extranjeros (Nowitzki, Stojakovic, Gasol, Yao Ming, Parker, Ginobili, Kirilenko, Nesterovic, Turkouglu, Ilguaskas, Okur...). A buenas horas me salía alguno hace 20 años... Leo en el Foro de Eurosport.es que vuestro baloncesto es de McDonald`s. Buena comparación. Jugáis como coméis. Y aunque me consta que el “Jefe” de esta página es devoto sin límites del hamburguesón grasiento y las patatas deluxe, eso no deja de ser un síntoma inequívoco de que se nos ha caído el mito de la NBA. Hace tiempo que sospecho que los europeos son mejores, más inteligentes y más profesionales. Preparan los partidos, estudian a sus rivales y toman mejores decisiones. Conocen mejor este juego que nació para ser practicado en equipo y no para que un puñado de niñatos se empeñen en buscar el lucimiento personal, en buscar la humillación del rival con un “in your face” y en jugar, en definitiva, con las ilusiones de un país que mejor haría en centrarse en ver nadar a Michael Phelps o en saber si Maurice Greene es capaz de reeditar viejos éxitos. Lo dicho. Para mí se acabaron los partidos del “Dream Team”. A partir de aquí, me aferraré a mis rasgos “alemanes” para nacionalizarme europeo y apoyar al otro basket, al hermano pobre, a los argentinos, serbios, españoles o lituanos. Sencillamente, ya son mejores que nosotros. La de Puerto Rico, no será, seguro, vuestra última derrota".
http://translate.google.com/transla...=UTF-8&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&prev=/language_tools Certainly not a perfect translation. Actually entertaining. I'm glad to hear that Larry learned to 'hurl'.
The comedic value of online translators should never be underestimated. Now how about someone who knows Spanish translate it so I don't start laughing halfway through the first paragraph.
You GOT IT, DoD: open letter of the mythical player to the American National Team Larry Bird attacks the way Dream Team Plays Eurosport, on its web page, unveils an open letter from Larrry Bird to the Dream Team: Here, we reproduce it for you: "My dear patriots: The Puerto Rico game will be the last game I shall see of the [Olympic] games. It's been a while I have been contemplating such measure. You should be asking why. It is simple. WHat you do is not basketball. American basketball has remained what you do for exhibition and preseason games such as Alley Hoops and dunks between quarters. Such is not the case. I remember when I started playing. My coaches insisted once and again on fundamentals. I learned to dribble the ball, switch direction, reverse dribble, enter the basket on the right and the left, to swish the shot without rim, fake, shoot, pass and cut; then, after that, they taught me to defend my rival, to help my teammates, to block, to pass between defenders when I was the one blocked. It was fun. It was total basketball. I remember I used to study my opponent; to know whether he had a preference to move to his left or his right, and if he would fake or shoot first, and if he tended to pass with one hand or both... Now, none of that exists. The basketball you now practice is deplorable. Your sole satisfaction is a reverse dunk and I would even assure you that you'd feel satisfied if a teammate misses or loses the ball. You are egotistic, vain, and your idea of basketball doesn't see jumping of shooting three-pointers. The day that your coach taught (taught?) to pass, fake, find the teammate in the best position or some medium intelligent concept you weren't there, or what is worse, you didn't understand it. I look at the present NBA. Of the 20 best players, we have more than a few foreigners (Nowitzki, Stojakovic, Gasol, Yao Ming, Parker, Ginobili, Kirilenko, Nesterovic, Turkouglu, Ilguaskas, Okur...). If any, there was only one 20 years ago... I read on the Eurosport forums that your basketball is like McDonald's. Good comparison. You play like you eat. And even though I know for a fact that the "ADMIN" of these pages is a loyal greasy hamburger and deluxe fry eater, it doesn't stop it from being an unequivocal symptom that we have now gotten the myth of the NBA. It's been so long that I suspected the Europeans are better, more intelligent, more professional. They prepare for their games, study their opponents, and make better decisions. They know this game as born to be played in a team much better and not so that a bunch of spoiled children start to look at themselves in a personal display, to look to humiliate their opponent with an "in your face" and to play, definitely, with the illusion that a country that would do much better in concentrate itself on seeing Michael Phelps swim, or to find out if Maurice Green is able to re-open past success. That said, for me, there will no longer be games of "Dream Teams". From here on, I will hang on to my "German" roots so I can nationalize myself as European and support the other basketball, the poor brother, Argentinean, Serbian, Spanish, or Lithuanian. Simply, much better than us they are. That one coming from Puerto Rico, will not, I assure you, be your last defeat." ------------- Foreshadowing, eh? It only took me a minute.
Ok, I'm confused. Did Larry Bird really write this, or is just someone imagining what a letter from Larry Bird might sound like?
Open Letter. Sort of like, what he would write to them if he were alive... Wait a minute... he's still alive, no?
I promise you, that is not Larry Bird saying that. Here is what Larry Bird had to say in Todays edition of the Indy Star: Larry Bird Pacers president, three-time NBA MVP, member of 1992 U.S. Olympic "Dream Team," All-American at Indiana State "One of the things with a lot of these guys is playing time. Everybody wants to play. I think the way you can remedy that is to put together a team with eight NBA players and four college players. That way, it would be a lot easier for the college guys to sit than it would be for these NBA stars. Because you know everybody wants to play. "A lot of times, you have to cut your rotations down and go with eight or nine guys when you get into an environment like the Olympics. It's really the only way to get any kind of continuity among the guys on the floor. "But I don't think they should ever drop the NBA players just because a few guys drop out. It's still an honor to play for your country and it's still a great experience to play for your country. And our best players are in the NBA, regardless of what anybody tries to say. "I think in things like the Olympics, it's just a different style game. One thing you have to do is hit outside shots. When the other teams pack it in and get in those zones, you've got to be able to make shots from the outside. Anybody that can swing it around and make those shots helps in that type of basketball. "And I still think they are going to win because their bracket is set up pretty well. They'll have games when they struggle, but I think there's enough talent and they'll realize what they need to do to take care of business." http://www.indystar.com/articles/5/171149-8225-036.html
I translated the post game conference after the US lost to italy in germany,from german to english. One qoute was by Iverson who probably said something to the effect "this is a wakeup call for us" which came out as " das is a vakeup call for us". I couldn't read after that because I was laughing so hard.
I didn't bother reading the letter, but I'm sure he hates the team because there are no white people on it.
yeah, i can't really see larry bird taking the time to write to them to blast them like that, especially being a freakin' GM. that thing was so cliched (you'd like to see a teammate miss? wtf). maybe if they'd said DavidS wrote it or something. or if he did, negotations could go like this now, "larry, for all those dunks last year, i'd like a million dollar 'in your face' bonus on this contract" (turning to agent as larry laughs): "oh look he is amused, is the total basketball"
birdman's an idiot... how excatly is basketball a blackman's game? or for that matter, an American game? Sports are universal!
LOL! That would be the day that Francis and Bird get into a basketball debate! Heh! Francis: "I have mad skills! You don't know what you are taking about!" Bird: "" Even if Bird didn't write that open letter. His views about today's leauge has been expressed before.
That statement says a lot about the *definition* of dribbling technique. More dribbling is not necessarily "better" dribbling. It could equate to a lot of wasted motion.
