There was this story I used to love to repeat about the Whitey Ford, Mickey Mantle,and Billy Martin...Now for those of you who, like me, are way too young to remember these characters first hand, they were three best friends of completlely different personalities and backgrounds who happened to form a unique bond of friendship while playing for the best team in baseball in the biggest city in the land...Never mind that I have been a lifelong Yankee hater, this is a funny stort. To backtrack, Whitey Ford was the southern gentleman, the quiet classy veteran who actually said "Ma'am" to ladies...Mickey was the yokel, the aw shucks young man fullt enjoying the experience of life in the Big City, the kind of guy who would show up drunk to a game, hit a game winning homer, and later describe his technique as " I saw three balls...and swung at the middle one." Billy was the scrappy little kid who grew up on the mean streets, hard as nails and ready to fight anybody, anytime...and as such often the but of the joke. Well the three of them were out hunting one fine day, in th back woods of somewhere or other...This was old hat to Mickey and Whitey, but Billy was a bit of a neophyte shooting at anything bigger than a rat that couldn't shoot back, and was a little out of his element...but game, though, Billy was always game. Among the rules of hunting etiquette that Whitey and Mickey explained to Billy was that, when you approach comeone's land, you ask their permission before hunting on their land. Approaching this one farmstead, WHitey and Mickey suggested that Billy sit out this part of backwoods diplomacy as he was, well, a little wanting in that particular area. So Billy waits outside while Whitey and the Mick knock on the farmhouse door and proceed inside, where they explain the situation to the farmer who graciously agrees, but asks a favour. It seems that he recently purchased two cows to breed with his blue ribbon prize bull, but despite repeated efforts these particular cows had failed to conceive...A proud farmer assured them that it certainly wasn't his bull's doing, as he was considered the greatest stud around, as well as being acknowledged as the best bull seen in local environs in generations, and had won prizes at national competitions...So, in keeping with farm reasoning, the farmer had decided to put down the two barren cows before they wasted anyomre of his bull's time, and as the boys were there with their rifles, would they be so kind as to do the deed? By all means, sir, was the gentlemanly reply...and the two Yankees head outside loading their guns... " What did he say?" asks an anxious Martin upon their approach, bored as he was by nature gazing during the negotiations. Whereupon inspiration hits Mickey..." The damned sonofagun told us to get off his land!" was the feigned indignant reply, with a wink at Whitey... " Yeah, but you know what, I aim to teach him some manners!" came the conspiratorial reply of Ford who was quick to the joke that Mickey had thought up..." This will show him!" and he takes aim at one of the cows and fires, dropping it dead. " Damned straight!" yells Mickey, and drops the second cow...and as the grinning pair of would be jokers turn to Mickey expecting to see his amazed reaction to thier actions, they are startled by the sound of Martin's rifle... " Yeah, and I got his damn bull, the b*stard!" came the triumphant holler... Ok, a long story, but it has a point...I miss the naivety, the texture of the stories of these kind of characters, or the Boys of Summer, or the various stories of the gods of the gridiron...We don't have them any more...We have paternity suits, and contract negotiations, and overdoses applenty, but where have all the characters gone? Not the good copy quotes like Sir Charles, although I miss him too, but the stories of camaraderie, of teammates up to hijinks, of getting busted for breaking curfew in training camp, of outrageous practical jokes? I know much of that was a result of practices such as train rides and bunking together on the road that the modern day athlete rarely has to endure, but I even cast a nostalgic eye back to the defined characters that made up the NBA during the 80's...Bird and Magic...The Nasy Boys...a young Air Jordan and an older Dr. J...The Huma Highlight Film and Chocolate Thunder... What do we have today? Shaq and Kobe bickering about who's team it is? Sean Kemp singing Billie Jean whenever a woman's name is mentioned in his presence? Indiana fans posting an over-under on how long Ron Artest stays in the game? The Jail Balzers? Who are the defining characters of todays NBA, who do you hear stories about that make you chuckle rather than sigh? Yes this may be the call of an ageing sports romantic, but here's to the Houston Rockets becoming the modern day Mickey, Whitey and Billy...Yao is the classy statesman...Stevie is the street wise scrapper...still auditionong for the role of Mickey, any thoughts? I honestly see the potential for an interesting mix of characters in this bunch, and many of them will still be together, and hopefully winning championships a decade down the raod...Won't it be better if there are hunting stories to go with the rings?
Well at he may not be at the same level of his chosen profession, but if you are looking for 'characters' then Moochie fits the bill. Cat may not be a bad choice either. He seems pretty emotional, and is quick to run around hugging his fellow players.
afraid to irk some yao fans, but to me: Rice is Whitey, the Southern gentleman. Francis is Martin, the feisty inner city tough. and... Yao is Mantle, the yokel who doesn't understand the customs... (yes i know he's from Shanghai and he's pretty smart...) Tough to say who's the greatest of those three, but Mantle had most of the limelight. Been a Yankees fan since when I could first read, and I too wonder where the good ol' days have gone... All that political correctness crap have taken all the character (or should I say caricatures) out of sports...
We're going to have to fit Boki in somewhere as the kinda goofy, yet still friendly, sidekick of Yao. Maybe he could be Yogi Berra?
Yankees tenures: Mickey Mantle '51-'68 (yokel) Yogi Berra '46-'63 (witty motor-mouth) Whitey Ford '53-'67 (gentleman) Billy Martin '50-'57 (tough) Sorry to keep beating this topic, but I think the Rockets had something special as well when we had: Dream, Thorpe, Horry, Smith, Maxwell or when the big 3 (Dream, Barkley, Drexler) were in town It's a tragedy that we couldn't keep them together a bit longer. It usually takes a couple of years for players to mesh with each other and develop chemistry to overcome that initial friction... What do you guys think about Cat as our Yogi Berra? He's got the motor-mouth, but I don't know about the wit though...
Good Luck! I certainly agree with your lament about contractsand paternaty suits. But I am sorry to say I think this Rockes team is all but a poster for what is wrong with sports today. Yao is going to make me take sme of this back in a bit, but please, allow me start with a rant. Francis, our obvious leaders squanders huge talent. Started impressivly by refusing to show up to the team that drafted him, then was second only to "good guy" to Rasheed Wallace in technicals his rookie year. He showed off by hanging on the rim (many of his technicals), doing that gay hands/antlers on head thing, and goose stepping when dribbling the ball. Two years ago he wnet down in a pile and when the call went against him, he literally threw a tantrum on the floor, kicking his legs and flailing his arms. The lady who sits behind me said "that is exactly how my four year old acts when he doesn't get his way" That's a hard guy to root for. Francis and Mobley show some maturity by going to the playoffs (as spectators) to get ready for it. They say all the right things, then basically go right back to old habits. Francis goes to the all star dunk competition with his bestest friend and it becomes apparent they did not even practice their play. That is respect. MoTaylor. Now there is a good guy. Thinks he is to good for the Clippers, but is to lazy to go for a board. Takes cash in college and thinks its the right thing to do. Not smart enough to hide his pot use, and gets suspended for 5 games. Luckily he buys seats for kids showing what a strong moral character he is. Over the last few years...Mobley wouldnt know what a pass was if it gave him a blow job. Griffin did not spend the off season working on his body and shot as he should have. Cato is too tired from lugging his check to the bank to put out full effort. Pretty obvious nobody listens to the coach. Well you get my drift, we act liek a bunch of spoiled kids. However... Yao steps in. Works hard. Does as told. Doesn't whine. Improves his game. Improves his body. Now those are charestics I would like to emulate. (Those along with spelling) And you know, I think it is spilling over to the team. Steve's game has really been coming on in the last few months. Not just the numbers, but his whole style of play. Cato starts giviing effort, MoT almost plays defense. Could it be? So MacBeth, I hope you get your wish. I really, really do. There is a lot to overcome. But I have a sense of hope that I did not a year ago.
I don't think anyone will ever have the unintentional wit that Yogi had...There are all the famous ones, " Nobody goes there anymore cause it's too crowded"..." Baseball is 90% mental...and the other half is physical"...etc., but my two favorites are less well known.. 1) Yogi was at a formal meet and greet with NYC big shots on a very hot summer day, but his gaberdine suit kept from feeling the full effects of the heart wave...When he was introduced to the Mayor's wife, she commented on hisrelatively fresh appeaance by saying " You are looking awefully cool, Mr. Berra." to which Yogi responded " Thank you ma'am....you don't look so hot yourself." 2) This is the best ever...Back in grade school, after marking the latest in a long line of dismal papers turned in by young Yogi Berra, his teacher asked him " Mr. berra, don't you know anything? To which Yogi replied " Ma'am, I don't even suspect anything."
I understand what you're saying, but aside from possibly Mo, none of those are indicative of deep seeded character flaws, and moreover are the kinds of flaws that can go hand in hand with a team of characters...I mean, if Mickey can show up drunk to a game, I think we can forgive Francis the occassional, ok perpetual need to hop skip and jump his way across the halfcourt line...I don't like it, and moreover it and many of the other things you mentioned lead to poor basketball, but aren't mutually exclusive with what I'm talking about...No serious societal attitude problems. I agree with your take on Yao, and I 100% agree that his presence is by a mile the greatest positive sign I see for our future success, attitude wise.
A shame...but we don't live twenty or thirty years ago. The public is less willing to forgive "indiscretions," particularly where it shows up on the floor (remember Bird and Dr. J also had their bouts with children born out of wedlock, and as mentioned the Mick's addictions make John Lucas look stone cold sober). Combine that with the fact journalists are more willing to report those personal details, and you get the "personalities" of the sports world, circa 2003. Having said that, the Houston organizations have gotten pretty good individuals. Both Bidge and Bagwell stray away from the sensational. On the basketball court, Yao Ming is nicely continuing the "dominant stranger in a strange land" blueprint laid down by Olajuwon. Rudy also tells some amusing tales about the guys road tripping together, so if you are looking for "feel good" stories about the off-court antics of our heroes, they are still out there...just a lot more difficult to find.
Oh, I understand why it's happening, and another big factor is the degree to which endorsement deals attempt to homogenize behaviuor for the sake of sales, bu and large, so the only abberations are the extreme ones like drug addiction and run ins with the law...and I agree 100% about the press..see pres. Kennedy vs. Hart or Clinton as examples in other spheres...I just really, really miss the fact that, by and large, the best sports books I can read, in terms of stories of characters, all took place at least 25 years ago...
Just to make some counter points: Steve like John Elway made a draft day bad PR mistake. Steve plays hard but out of control. However at the all-star game he shows up for the Rookie game, Slam Dunk, and some of the Stay in School events. Having so much to do he gets there at 6:00 am during a time when most of the NBA are on vacation. This is after his flight didn't get in until after midnight the night before. He tells one reporter that he too wishes he could sleep in and get some rest, but he understands his responsibilities and that he's willing to do what it takes to be a star in the league. Steve improves over the off-season, and his team ends up with 45 wins. The All-Star game where he and Mobely didn't connect well for the Slam dunk competition proves only that Steve was dedicated enough to show up. Kobe, Vince, and many other high-flying veterans wouldn't even do that. Steve mentions that his heroes like Jordan, and Wilkens were showing up every year, even if they made a good show the year before. Steve was willing to show up and enter the contest in respect of the old-school way of doing things. Yao Ming comes to Houston. Much of the Rocket's star's limelight is going to be rerouted Ming's way. Rather than be resentful, or even taking a wait and see approach, Steve rushes to his new teammates side. He stretches with the big fellow, drives him around, helps him get acclomated to handling the media, and goes out of his way to welcome this Rookie. Not many stars in the league ever made such such attempts for a rookie. Steve also changed his diet to ensure his Meniere's disease didn't sideline him for much of the season. For anyone who's ever gone on a diet, or completely changed their eating habits because of illness, you will know that it isn't easy. Steve also got his shoulder surgery early in the off-season so that he would still have time to prepare for the season, talked with veterans like Michael Jordan, John Lucas, and the Rockets staff in order learn more about what he needed to do to become a leader for the team, and in the league. According to Rockets staff, Steve was visiting them DAILY in an effort to ask for information. This in a day and age when many young players don't want to listen to coaches and seem to have a chip on their shoulder. As the second half of the season continues we are beginning to see how much Steve is improving, and sacrificing some of his scoring for getting teammates involved, and cutting down his TO's. By the way Steve Francis' techs have dropped dramatically and he is no longer second in the league. What better way to show character than improvement and maturity in such an area. By and large I think the Rockets have a lot of good 'Characters' on the team. Steve is among the best of them
Wow! Pat. I thought Macbeth's initial post was a good read until I stumbled on your own. Rebuttal indeed.
