Koolaid_Man
07-06-2013, 04:21 PM
Epic from Rick Fox...and this was in Feb when Dwight still played with us: :toast
Fox, who played a key role in three Lakers (http://espn.go.com/nba/team/_/name/lal/los-angeles-lakers) championships between 2000-02, said Monday in a radio interview with Max Kellerman and Marcellus Wiley on ESPNLA 710 that he doesn't think Howard "wants to be here," or that he appreciates and respects the history of the Lakers franchise.
"I’d like to see a lot more of the actions that tell me that winning is the most important thing to him, as well as being a Laker, and I don’t get that yet," Fox said.
"Maybe in another city he can fool some people with that, but unfortunately for him, in Los Angeles, you got a legacy of great players that have shown the city what it looks like. What commitment looks like, what championship play looks like, what championship talk looks like," Fox continued.
Fox, of course, played for the Lakers while Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/110/kobe-bryant) often openly feuded with each other through the media and behind closed doors.
"Even when there’s been inner struggles between teammates on the Lakers to actually work it out, once they hit the floor, you still saw effort that was respectful of the uniform, respectful of all the fans out here in L.A. that fight and argue with so much pride for the Lakers organization that we aren’t getting," Fox said. "And so, for my money, I’m not seeing a guy that wants to be here."
Fox said he felt Howard was trying to prove a point with the way he's played this season.
"He feels entitled that he should be given the ball, things should be run through him, and he’s trying to prove a point, and the point is that like, 'I, in some way, should be No. 1 and I should be respected and therefore I’m giving the effort that you get because I don’t feel respected.' At the end of the day he’s had teams where he’s been the No. 1, for a number of years, and it’s led to exactly what he has: no championships."
Fox isn't the first former Lakers player to publicly criticize Howard and the Lakers in this most disappointing of seasons. Magic Johnson, O'Neal, Robert Horry and James Worthy have all been critical.
Fox said he has thus far tried to keep his feelings private, but wasn't going to censor himself when asked questions.
"I try to dance around and be politically correct, but it’s hard to do that when the people that love this team, and care about this team, are more passionate and upset about this situation than he’s been, or that other people have been. And quite frankly, there’s no room for that. There’s no room. I don’t want to turn my TV on and pay my money to watch that," Fox said.
“If Dwight ever really took a second -- and I don’t know if he’s done this -- to really look at the history of the organization and what it stands for and who has come before him and what this is about, then he would never look at it for a second at himself as bigger than this situation.
"That’s what it feels like; he wouldn’t look across the locker room at arguably one of the top players ever to play the game, ever, and he’s butting heads. Would he butt heads with Michael Jordan like this? Then he gotta go, he gotta go.”
Fox, who played a key role in three Lakers (http://espn.go.com/nba/team/_/name/lal/los-angeles-lakers) championships between 2000-02, said Monday in a radio interview with Max Kellerman and Marcellus Wiley on ESPNLA 710 that he doesn't think Howard "wants to be here," or that he appreciates and respects the history of the Lakers franchise.
"I’d like to see a lot more of the actions that tell me that winning is the most important thing to him, as well as being a Laker, and I don’t get that yet," Fox said.
"Maybe in another city he can fool some people with that, but unfortunately for him, in Los Angeles, you got a legacy of great players that have shown the city what it looks like. What commitment looks like, what championship play looks like, what championship talk looks like," Fox continued.
Fox, of course, played for the Lakers while Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/110/kobe-bryant) often openly feuded with each other through the media and behind closed doors.
"Even when there’s been inner struggles between teammates on the Lakers to actually work it out, once they hit the floor, you still saw effort that was respectful of the uniform, respectful of all the fans out here in L.A. that fight and argue with so much pride for the Lakers organization that we aren’t getting," Fox said. "And so, for my money, I’m not seeing a guy that wants to be here."
Fox said he felt Howard was trying to prove a point with the way he's played this season.
"He feels entitled that he should be given the ball, things should be run through him, and he’s trying to prove a point, and the point is that like, 'I, in some way, should be No. 1 and I should be respected and therefore I’m giving the effort that you get because I don’t feel respected.' At the end of the day he’s had teams where he’s been the No. 1, for a number of years, and it’s led to exactly what he has: no championships."
Fox isn't the first former Lakers player to publicly criticize Howard and the Lakers in this most disappointing of seasons. Magic Johnson, O'Neal, Robert Horry and James Worthy have all been critical.
Fox said he has thus far tried to keep his feelings private, but wasn't going to censor himself when asked questions.
"I try to dance around and be politically correct, but it’s hard to do that when the people that love this team, and care about this team, are more passionate and upset about this situation than he’s been, or that other people have been. And quite frankly, there’s no room for that. There’s no room. I don’t want to turn my TV on and pay my money to watch that," Fox said.
“If Dwight ever really took a second -- and I don’t know if he’s done this -- to really look at the history of the organization and what it stands for and who has come before him and what this is about, then he would never look at it for a second at himself as bigger than this situation.
"That’s what it feels like; he wouldn’t look across the locker room at arguably one of the top players ever to play the game, ever, and he’s butting heads. Would he butt heads with Michael Jordan like this? Then he gotta go, he gotta go.”