Hating Lakers one thing fans often agree on
Mike Monroe
Express-News
The Spurs have been out of the playoff picture for more than a month, so roadside vendors of NBA-related T-shirts and pennants had to get creative to attract San Antonians.
A stand at the corner of San Pedro and Oblate offered T-shirts with Spurs logos and Nos. 21, 20 and 9 last weekend, but the shirts hanging up front to catch the eyes of motorists relied on an emotion more certain to compel sales.
“Lakers Suck” was the theme of the day.
In silver and black lettering, of course.
Boston has won 17 NBA les, more than any franchise. But the Lakers, not the Celtics, are the Yankees of basketball, despised for their very success.
The Lakers will be making their 30th appearance in the Finals, beginning with Thursday's Game 1, in search of the franchise's 15th championship.
Count on most of the league's fans that don't count purple and gold among their favorite colors to be rooting for the Magic.
Lakers Hatred is an extension of fan jealousy, and it makes for great rivalries. “Lakers Suck” T-shirts would have sold briskly in Boston during the 1980s had it not been a time of more sensitive restraint. Then, “Beat L.A.” shirts ruled the day, and the chant would begin at the Boston Garden an hour before tip-off of the three Lakers-Celtics Finals of the Larry Bird-Magic Johnson era.
A large measure of modern-day Lakers Hatred derives from outright jealousy that Kobe Bryant is the game's most skilled closer, turning even great defenders into helpless witnesses.
That he takes such obvious delight in his own exploits fuels the antipathy.
Bryant has spent the bulk of his career trying to be Michael Jordan. He has matched Jordan's ability to make the most difficult shots when they matter most, but he hasn't replicated His Airness' universal appeal. This is because he can't stop himself from falling into the playground ethos demanding that bravado accompany every on-court success.
Bryant is the an hesis of Tim Duncan, whose stoicism makes him the perfect Spur but the bogeyman of TV ratings.
Jordan talked trash, too, but with a subtlety that defied detection. And he eschewed histrionics. When he made his sixth 3-pointer of the first half in Game 1 of the 1992 Finals en route to a 33-point victory over the Trail Blazers, he shrugged his shoulders and gave the world a look that seemed to say, “I'm sorry ... I don't even believe it myself.”
Bryant would have bobbed his head in exaggerated affirmation of his own greatness.
That the NBA needs the Lakers to succeed was underscored during their Western Conference finals matchup with the Nuggets. Never had ABC had higher ratings for a conference finals game than it garnered from its Game 3 telecast on May 23. Never had a cable broadcast of an NBA series drawn such high ratings as it did for ESPN.
That many of the series viewers tuned in hoping to watch the Nuggets wipe the smirk from Bryant's face is a truth ABC and ESPN demographers understand.
Now the Lakers face the Magic in an NBA Finals commissioner David Stern will pretend to love just as much as he would have enjoyed Lakers vs. Cavs and Kobe vs. LeBron.
Expect to hear Stern tell us that Kobe vs. Dwight Howard is equally compelling.
Don't believe him for even a fraction of a second.
The good news for Stern: Lakers vs. Magic is ironclad, prima facie evidence the league doesn't manipulate the Finals matchups.
I don't hate LA...nothing against the team. I don't like SOME of the Laker fans..who think their team should be handed the LOB every year.
I don't get this LA hate either.
I idolized Magic Johnson as a youngster, but Shaq and Kobe never grew on me in Purple and Gold. Wouldn't be surprised if some marketing genius part of the Lakers' organization came up with those "Laker Suck" T-shirts.
Hmm I wonder why....could it have something to do with them knocking the Spurs out of the playoffs in '01, '02, and '04?I idolized Magic Johnson as a youngster, but Shaq and Kobe never grew on me in Purple and Gold. Wouldn't be surprised if some marketing genius part of the Lakers' organization came up with those "Laker Suck" T-shirts.
The only one that really stings out of those years was '04, ironically because of the .4 phenomenon....would've like to have seen us get our crack at Detroit instead of seeing the Lakers embarass themselves, though that wasn't so bad either. Just never cared for Kobe that much and I hated the way Shaq left Orlando for Hollywood....was just lame to me and he became extremely arrogant after that.
you, too.
Some of the Laker fans, I've discovered, are actually cool though.
Technically, the Spurs did get a crack at the Pistons. It just wasn't in 2004. I use to really hate the Lakers when I was in high school back that was during their 3peat. I also was thrilled when the Pistons beat them in the 2004 Finals. However, I kinda felt sorry for the Lakers during the 2004-2005 season. That season was a disaster for them. It was their first season following Shaq's divorce from Kobe. They finished the season with a losing record and missed the playoffs.
Yeah, but after Tim hit that crazy shot falling down in the closing moments of game 5 I thought we'd get our first crack that year. I was laying on my bed swearing Fisher didn't get it off and was paralyzed with rage when they didn't wave off the basket.
It hurts worse than a blowout IMO because you get a false sense of hope that you're actually going to pull the game out.
Lol..I agree.
In a blowout loss, you can slowly disengage mentally, smoke a cig and wonder what the you're going to watch next.
In a buzzer beater it's like..."Yes....yes..yes.......NNNOOOO!!"
God, I hate that....lol
Blowouts don't hurt at all. You are just pissed. Game 4 last year was 10 times harder on me than Game 6. Game 6, man, that third quarter must have lasted two or three days.
Yup, LOL. You start mentally preparing yourself in blowouts for what comes next (next game, season, etc.). Sometimes you don't even watch the rest of the game. There's just no closure with a buzzer beater....well there is technically, but probably not the type you're looking for.
I don't mind em.
Although lots of FGT laker fans on this site.
Same w/ Spurs fans though.
Mavs 2006 Champs
No doubt. It's an emotional kick in the nuts.
That sure sounds like the comment of a Laker fan, Monroe.A large measure of modern-day Lakers Hatred derives from outright jealousy that Kobe Bryant is the game's most skilled closer, turning even great defenders into helpless witnesses.
Kobe elicits hate because of his perceived character and demeanor/disingenuousness, not his ability.
That goes back to the disingenuousness.Bryant has spent the bulk of his career trying to be Michael Jordan. He has matched Jordan's ability to make the most difficult shots when they matter most, but he hasn't replicated His Airness' universal appeal. This is because he can't stop himself from falling into the playground ethos demanding that bravado accompany every on-court success.
M.J. was as arrogant, y, ruthless and nasty a player that's ever played, but we didn't mind because, it was who he was. "The Genuine Article."
Men wanted to be him, and women wanted to be with him. Something Kobe has always longed for.
Kobe's ability is no doubt on par with M.J. on the court, but his drive seems to come from an insecurity rather thatn a strength.
Kobe has always tried to play/look the part of the Alpha-Dog, or be whatever/whoever he thought he needed to be to be envied and admired, but you can't fake that kind of thing.
Maybe it's not even Kobe's fault, though.
Maybe growing up overseas and feeling like an outsider played a role, or maybe never getting humbled at an early age the way M.J. was could have changed the person he became? I guess we'll never really know.
I do know this.
Fugazi is frowned upon, not greatness.
The truth hurts.
well said
I enjoyed Game 6 alot.
Why be jealous of second-best? Has to be more to Laker hate than les.
I was listening to the sports station on the radio this morning and one of the commentators made an interesting point, regarding why the Lakers are a polarizing team (either you love them or despise them). He said in the last 30 finals - including the one coming up - guess how many included the Lakers?
15.
HALF of the finals in the last 30 years had the LA Lakers representing the Western Conference. Pretty astounding. And possibly one of the reasons people either hate (too many appearances by a single team) or love (their team appears a lot) the Lakers.
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