Hoopspeak.com: Theories on why you don’t like the Spurs

[Austin_Toros]

Recently there was a thread about the Spurs being hated. An interesting blog by Ethan Sherwood Strauss suggests a few reasons to help explain the hate:
http://hoopspeak.com/2013/05/theorie...ike-the-spurs/

Sherwood Strauss makes some compelling points. Do you agree with his theories?

[cheguevara]

well the comment in that site summs it up for me IMO:

"People dont like the Spurs and love the OKC's and Miamis for the same reason that this country follows Kim Kardashian and Lindsay Lohan and doesnt have a clue as to what real talent is: Lets face it. Most of the country is ignorant and lazy and just wants to be spoon fed from the media. They want to see dunks and high flyers instead of dissection and execution. If the media branded basketball like they do football (AKA with all the collective insight and analysis), the Spurs would be talked about every single week. But basketball is not branded as an analytical sport. Its branded as pure entertainment. Its branded as WWF with a hint of reality."

[Hoops Czar]

well the comment in that site summs it up for me IMO:

"People dont like the Spurs and love the OKC's and Miamis for the same reason that this country follows Kim Kardashian and Lindsay Lohan and doesnt have a clue as to what real talent is: Lets face it. Most of the country is ignorant and lazy and just wants to be spoon fed from the media. They want to see dunks and high flyers instead of dissection and execution. If the media branded basketball like they do football (AKA with all the collective insight and analysis), the Spurs would be talked about every single week. But basketball is not branded as an analytical sport. Its branded as pure entertainment. Its branded as WWF with a hint of reality."

I stopped reading after the first sentence. Miami and OKC, last year's NBA finalists, don't have talent but the Spurs do ( Kardashian and Lohan have no talent in case you can't make the connection). The Spurs are talked about plenty but people around here want Miami and OKC treatment and it's not gonna happen. When they were actually winning championships, they were talked about plenty. Most Spurs fans here cry for attention from the media and then in the same breath talk about wanting to fly under the radar. You can't have it both ways. I don't know why this forum scours the internet 24/7 to find biased articles like this one from obscure websites that nobody ever heard of. I don't hear the players or coaches complaining and you won't anytime soon.

[EVAY]

This is nothing. The article doesn't say the author hates the spurs; it merely points out that some people do. And wonders why.

It also points out that basketball fans (whom it calls nerds) love the spurs. It is nothing more or less than what we have often said and seen here. Knowledgeable basketball fans love the spurs, but Stern doesn't market basketball. He markets celebrities because the casual fan can
relate to celebrities more than they can relate to basketball ins and outs. And casual fans create ratings.

[Mel_13]

FYI, the blog cited in the thread is an ESPN Truehoop blog.

[barbacoataco]

well the comment in that site summs it up for me IMO:

"People dont like the Spurs and love the OKC's and Miamis for the same reason that this country follows Kim Kardashian and Lindsay Lohan and doesnt have a clue as to what real talent is: Lets face it. Most of the country is ignorant and lazy and just wants to be spoon fed from the media. They want to see dunks and high flyers instead of dissection and execution. If the media branded basketball like they do football (AKA with all the collective insight and analysis), the Spurs would be talked about every single week. But basketball is not branded as an analytical sport. Its branded as pure entertainment. Its branded as WWF with a hint of reality."

[racm]

tl;dr everybody wants to date the bimbo supermodel even if she has to listen to her iPod telling her to breathe while nobody wants to date the nerd in the class but who is surprisingly good in bed

[Kidd K]

It think it's more about the national media constantly labeling them as "boring" than has anything to do with what's actually taking place on court or off regarding them. Even the homer announce teams for teams the Spurs are playing do it far less than ESPN does. It's mostly just the national broadcasts that do it, not the locals. Which is weird since the local guys are supposed to biased, yet tend to act far more professional and neutral than ESPN will. ESPN isn't the only station that does it, but they do most of it imo.

And that doesn't even really touch on the subtle things like propping up whoever they're facing as exciting and underdogs too, so any time the Spurs win it's disappointing for casuals. People are going to bail when they pile their positive coverage onto a handful of teams, then suddenly those teams aren't in the playoffs anymore. That's why no one wants to see the Spurs or Grizzlies, those were the teams they were too busy propping up their opponents to make no one care when they won.

[Obstructed_View]

Imagine if Chris Mortenson and Sal Palantonio talked down the Packers because they didn't want to have to do assignments in Wisconsin in December because it's cold and the dance clubs are full of fat girls and close at 7PM. It's like that.

[Austin_Toros]

I stopped reading after the first sentence...I don't know why this forum scours the internet 24/7 to find biased articles like this one from obscure websites that nobody ever heard of. I don't hear the players or coaches complaining and you won't anytime soon.

If you're implying that TrueHoop is "obscure", that is probably not so true; not only is it an affiliate of ESPN but the author has been a blogger for a number of sources. Just because you haven't heard of it doesn't automatically mean that nobody ever heard of it. Also, the fact that you're arguing about the Spurs media attention shows that you completely missed the crux of the article and the whole point of this thread. Maybe you should read more than the first sentence...

FYI, the blog cited in the thread is an ESPN Truehoop blog.

I know. It does not matter.

It think it's more about the national media constantly labeling them as "boring" than has anything to do with what's actually taking place on court or off regarding them. Even the homer announce teams for teams the Spurs are playing do it far less than ESPN does. It's mostly just the national broadcasts that do it, not the locals. Which is weird since the local guys are supposed to biased, yet tend to act far more professional and neutral than ESPN will. ESPN isn't the only station that does it, but they do most of it imo.

And that doesn't even really touch on the subtle things like propping up whoever they're facing as exciting and underdogs too, so any time the Spurs win it's disappointing for casuals. People are going to bail when they pile their positive coverage onto a handful of teams, then suddenly those teams aren't in the playoffs anymore. That's why no one wants to see the Spurs or Grizzlies, those were the teams they were too busy propping up their opponents to make no one care when they won.

I agree with you. The media is probably the biggest influence for the Spurs' reputation, especially for casual fans who are quick to believe the Spurs are "boring" after hearing it from a loud-mouth such as Stephen A. Smith. It also props up people's need to follow a flashy superstar above strategic team play.

[GSH]

The Spurs are talked about plenty but people around here want Miami and OKC treatment and it's not gonna happen. When they were actually winning championships, they were talked about plenty.

Remind me... how many Championships has OKC won? Oh, wait, you're a Cleveland fan, aren't you? In that case, how many Championships have the Cavs won? Heh. That's right, zero. And in those seven years when they were talked about constantly, they won how many Conference Championships? One?

Sort of shoots your theory to , doesn't it?

[InRareForm]

Sherwood is a geek

[Kidd K]

Remind me... how many Championships has OKC won? Oh, wait, you're a Cleveland fan, aren't you? In that case, how many Championships have the Cavs won? Heh. That's right, zero. And in those seven years when they were talked about constantly, they won how many Conference Championships? One?

Sort of shoots your theory to , doesn't it?

I think he was referring to the Spurs when he said that, but maybe he really was being an idiot. I dunno.

[GSH]

I think he was referring to the Spurs when he said that, but maybe he really was being an idiot. I dunno.

He was saying that the Spurs don't get any attention because they aren't relevant, because they haven't won a championship in several years.

My point was that the whole time LeBron was in Cleveland, they got non-stop attention. And yet they never won a Championship, and only went to the Finals once.

And, yes, he was being an idiot.

[Hoops Czar]

He was saying that the Spurs don't get any attention because they aren't relevant, because they haven't won a championship in several years.

My point was that the whole time LeBron was in Cleveland, they got non-stop attention. And yet they never won a Championship, and only went to the Finals once....

It could be that your the poster child for an attention who's struggling to adjust to the changing times..

What does my fandom have to do with the price of tea in China? Nice of you to want to switch gears mid stream instead of addressing the issue at hand. It's probably because my post flew over your head. Lebron James and Kevin Durant are the here and now while Duncan and the Spurs are yesterday's news. Knowing how you addressed my last post, you probably still don't get it. When the Spurs stars were in their prime and winning, they were getting the recognition that OKC and others are getting presently. In regards to Lebron, If you can't understand why Lebron has gotten attention from the moment he stepped on an NBA court, then your hoplessly lost and I can't help you. Anyways, if you are a true Spurs fans as you claim to be, the lack of notoriety shouldn't bother you.

[FromWayDowntown]

Anyways, if you are a true Spurs fans as you claim to be, the lack of notoriety shouldn't bother you.

I agree completely with your latter point and really don't care much about whether the Spurs get notoriety or not.

They've won.

Duncan, Parker, Ginobili, and Pop are all fast-tracked to the Hall of Fame, and perhaps because of the way that they have avoided the spotlight, they've stayed together for a uniquely long period of time that has kept the San Antonio Spurs relevant for longer than just about any franchise (and certainly longer than any other small market franchise) in the history of the league.

Much of what they've done has changed the way the game is played and they've become the model that so many other franchises have tried to follow.

There's no journalist who is going to make any of those things any more or less true.

[rjv]

well the comment in that site summs it up for me IMO:

"People dont like the Spurs and love the OKC's and Miamis for the same reason that this country follows Kim Kardashian and Lindsay Lohan and doesnt have a clue as to what real talent is: Lets face it. Most of the country is ignorant and lazy and just wants to be spoon fed from the media. They want to see dunks and high flyers instead of dissection and execution. If the media branded basketball like they do football (AKA with all the collective insight and analysis), the Spurs would be talked about every single week. But basketball is not branded as an analytical sport. Its branded as pure entertainment. Its branded as WWF with a hint of reality."

this should become my new sig

[ffadicted]

tl;dr everybody wants to date the bimbo supermodel even if she has to listen to her iPod telling her to breathe while nobody wants to date the nerd in the class but who is surprisingly good in bed

[sananspursfan21]

It's much more simple than all the analysis and all the discussion. Spurs aren't liked cuz they've been doing it for years. I can't stand the new england patriots in the nfl cuz they win too much. My philosophy in sports is that I don't wanna see repeat champion unless it's my spurs or my st louis rams. Dumb as the general public may be,they want variety, and thats what it boils down to. This NBA is gonna get real boring if Lebron keeps winning mvp's and the heat keep being a shoe in for a championship. No one outside of Miami or bandwagon "fans" are going to enjoy that. Ask any NFL fan why they hate the new England patriots. The answer will 99 out of 100 be that they're sick of seeing them in the big games. It's that simple. Let's not over analyze it.

[Darius McCrary]

Imagine if Chris Mortenson and Sal Palantonio talked down the Packers because they didn't want to have to do assignments in Wisconsin in December because it's cold and the dance clubs are full of fat girls and close at 7PM. It's like that.

I still remember that Ric Bucher article from 03-04 where he ripped into the city for absolutely no reason.

[manufan10]

Solid takes, tbh. I've never been one who really cares for the media attention. I don't care about ratings. As long as the Spurs are winning, and I get to enjoy watching them then I couldn't care less what anyone else thinks.

I think I get enough out of the Grantland articles or the SBN where they break down plays and what works etc. I love those types of articles and prefer them to the "blow smoke up your ass" type.

[kaji157]

Most people in the US are lazy and ignorant, and that´s why the individual mentlity and s om culture succeeds. Because people it´s OK thinking, "oh i cannot earn millions because i don´t have the talent LeBron has". So they can feel right about their mediocrity and lazyness.

The Spurs are not only the opposite but put those people into the open about their hypocrisy. Because they gettheir success by being hardworkers. Even one of every Spurs player got there by working hard. And that´s not appeling to anyone. Because it just makes people realise that their own mediocrity is theirs fault, and not god´s.

[manufan10]

I didn't read the article until now, and just saw they referenced some of the same tweets that I posted.

[Rummpd]

As just one example the best big and PF sets an NBA record with 1st Team NBA in three decades and not a word on BSPN - also with all the sublimely bad basketball played this is on the NBA and its marketing. The NBA should be wanting a Spurs Heat finals and embrace it as the chance for the old men to beat LeBron and all that BS again. Shame on haters - you can root against the Spurs but to despise = pure hate for no reason except they are too damm good and better than so many teams in sports in so many ways.

This is actually a reasoned article as well - and in the end, who really cares I have seen Spurs fans in Moscow, Lithuania, Panama and around the US everywhere - I think the Spurs are more liked than many know and that a Heat Spurs series will draw the issue right now is Memphis is a boring 2

[pikkiwoki]

Most people in the US are lazy and ignorant, and that´s why the individual mentlity and s om culture succeeds. Because people it´s OK thinking, "oh i cannot earn millions because i don´t have the talent LeBron has". So they can feel right about their mediocrity and lazyness.

The Spurs are not only the opposite but put those people into the open about their hypocrisy. Because they gettheir success by being hardworkers. Even one of every Spurs player got there by working hard. And that´s not appeling to anyone. Because it just makes people realise that their own mediocrity is theirs fault, and not god´s.

man. that was deep.