Wow, scathing article about MJ's acceptance speech last night.

[sooneron]

Watching it this AM, I did have a few WTF? moments at what he said.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=aw-jordanhall091209&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

[Lott's Bandana]

Yeah, the speech was uncomfortable to watch, no other way to describe it.

"I was just going to come up here, say 'thank you', then walk away."

Should have.

[the_ouskull]

I'm not ready to rip him for his speech. I think that he was clearing up a lot of the rumors that have been swirling about him his entire career too. I get that, but yeah, he seemed like he was being a bit petty up there. I don't agree with the entire article, but it was a good one, and a valid one.

the_ouskull

[Collier11]

He was way too self centered and sh*tty

[Sooner04]

I'm as big a MJ fan as there is, and I thought that speech was horrifically awful. It was so bad I could've sworn he was on drugs.

[yermom]

yeah, that sounds tumoriffic or something

[soonerbub]

I'm as big a MJ fan as there is, and I thought that speech was horrifically awful. It was so bad I could've sworn he was on drugs.

I think there were a few cocktails consumed--Jerry Sloan slurred his way thru about 20 minutes it seemed

[sooner518]

harsh, yet exactly how I felt watching his uncomfortable speech. rather unfortunate

[Cam]

Can't disagree too much with the article. You could tell that pretty much everybody in the audience was uncomfortable with what was going down.

Some things are better left unsaid. "You were wrong dude". Really? You mean we didn't get it with the NCAA and NBA Championships, the MVP's, etc? Surprised dude can get his head thru anything but a double wide door.

[Half a Hundred]

Umm - that's MJ. He was as good as he was because he was the biggest prick on the planet. It's that drive to beat everyone, no matter what the situation is, that makes him Michael Jordan. While not exactly publicized, if you read many articles on him, it's not exactly a huge secret that he's a bit of a surly character.

[starrca23]

Read Playing for Keeps by David Halberstam (sp?). He puts it out there about Jordan unlike other autobiographies about MJ that are just a lovefest.

[the_ouskull]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/halloffame09/columns/story?columnist=adande_ja&page=JordanSpeech-090914

In the interest of fairness, J.A. Adande does a really good job of explaining Jordan's HoF speech, without really condoning it. I think that he pretty much nailed how I felt about it too.

the_ouskull

[the_ouskull]

Another good one by Matt McHale from By the Horns.

http://bullsbythehorns.com/?p=1152

the_ouskull

[stoops the eternal pimp]

never have been, never will be a jordan fan, so i can't say i'm completely unbiased..

but to go from the speeches by robinson and stockton to what he had to say....

david robinson showed me why even though i never cared about the spurs, he made me not mind them winning when he played...and he is still doing great things

john stockton was pretty funny..i don't know that i've ever heard him talk very much..again a classic

[the_ouskull]

Stockton's speech was a thing of beauty. I've saved it to my hard drive. Who knew that he was hilarious? I hope his shorts make the Nutters Hall of Fame too. They're first ballot in my book.

the_ouskull

[badger]

Here's hoping Blake Griffin becomes the greatest player of all time and MJ is forgotten because of players like Griffin... and Willie Warren too. And Mason-Griffin... et al...

I enjoyed watching MJ play, but I read a transcript of his speech and it seems downright spiteful. If he really wanted all of that to be heard (or read, in my case), he should have written another book. I wonder what Charles Barkley thinks of what MJ said... he was there, I'm sure he'll say something eventually.

[cheezyq]

I have to say that I saw nothing really wrong with that speech. The HoF induction was his chance to reminisce on his career, and his speech gave us an insight as to why he was the player that he became. He was and is a player and person who carries a huge chip on his shoulder at all times.

While others use their time on the stage as a platform for all they do outside the sport for charities and such, Jordan just showed that his first love has always been basketball. He gave us a play-by-play of how he became who he was on the court. Apparently it's been a source of healing for him in some way, as he appears to care about it above a lot of other things. I, for one, enjoyed it.

You could argue that his love of the game makes him a bit shallow, but I think it's just part of his psyche, part of how he handled his environment while growing up. And it became a part of who he was. Barry Sanders was similar in that he was always challenged by others throughout his life, particularly his own father, and that's what made him great on the field. Yet people frequently view him as strange, too, and criticized of his HoF induction speech.

What this speaks to me is that there is something behind constant criticism and being a great player. Guys like Jordan and Sanders faced consistent criticism, and rather than just give in and give up, it motivated them to fight harder and be better.

All I have left to ask is - who are we to sit and cast judgment on these players, just because we don't like how they speak in public?

[badger]

All I have left to ask is - who are we to sit and cast judgment on these players, just because we don't like how they speak in public?

They gave their opinion, we gave ours... ahh, the luxurious life of the message boarder... not quite as luxurious as millionaire ex-pro athletes, but still :D

[Collier11]

All I have left to ask is - who are we to sit and cast judgment on these players, just because we don't like how they speak in public?

Because most people when receiving a great honor could find the time to be humble and thankful, not go after people :rolleyes:

[cheezyq]

Because most people when receiving a great honor could find the time to be humble and thankful, not go after people :rolleyes:

I completely hear what you are saying, but I guess that's where I differ in opinion. I don't think he was going after people. I just think he was saying, "this is how I became who I was". He said "thank you" to all those people as they were motivators for him, both positive and negative, and I think he truly meant it. I don't think he was out to slight anyone, and I think everyone is too quick to roast him for it. Sure, he could have been more eloquent and his speech could have been more palatable. But Jordan's never been all THAT eloquent. He's always stumbled for words. He's never been a David Robinson kind of guy. All the memorable things about Jordan are in his facial expressions, if you think about it. When has Jordan ever said anything memorable?

The only real part where I think he went after someone was his commentary on Jerry Krause. Even then he was just sharing his personal philosophy that organizations put the teams together, but the players win the championships.

I can see how he came off all wrong, but only after reading these articles and such. When I first saw it, I thought he was honest and sincere in his thanks, that he was just trying to be funny and joking with everyone, but doing so clumsily.

[badger]

Saying thank you after insulting people is kind of like Kanye West saying "You know I love you Taylor Swift, but..." :D

What am I arguing for? I really don't care. It's basketball offseason and unless you guys are about to start a countdown thread... and it appears that you're not... see ya in a few months :)

[Collier11]

clumsily at best ;)

[Half a Hundred]

All I have left to ask is - who are we to sit and cast judgment on these players, just because we don't like how they speak in public?

You do know what board you're on right now, right?

[cheezyq]

Saying thank you after insulting people...

I get what you're saying, but Jordan's been friends with nearly all the guys he spoke about. He's competed against, and with (Dream Team, etc.), them on the court and the golf course. That's a whole lot different than what Kanye did. I think he tried to treat his speech like, "I'm just joking around with my buddies on the golf course", and it came out all wrong for most people. But whatever.

[Echoes]

Egh, I disagree. I liked the speech.

[picasso]

I sold some artwork to a police detective from Chicago a few years back and he more or less said Jordan was a turd and everyone in Chicago knew it.

[Eielson]

He's no Wilt Chamberlain...

:P

[starclassic tama]

good thing he was a basketball player not a professional public speaker

[stoops the eternal pimp]

I sold some artwork to a police detective from Chicago a few years back and he more or less said Jordan was a turd and everyone in Chicago knew it.

but you darn sure don't wanna say anything about oprah there

[sooneron]

He's no Wilt Chamberlain...

:P

He sure did try tho...