Time For Another Idiotic, Semi-Racist, Take from Bill Simmons

Since I am in a crummy mood this week I do want to thank RD for telling me to check out Twitter the other night. He told me this after the Big 10 canceled their fall sports, and said to search for Bill Simmons. Oh boy.

It is no secret that I am not a fan of Simmons. I was, but then I grew up, realized he is a mediocre, front running writer and now I have come to realize that he is too, albeit not on the surface to some, a racist. This isn't a new development either. Noam Scheiber of New York Times wrote a great piece awhile back detailing not only his racism at ESPN, Grantland and now The Ringer, but he also pointed out his sexism and his want to be famous and how that makes him treat others as if they are beneath him. I know he read this, and the replies, even though he claims he never does because since that piece, all of the sudden, The Ringer podcasting network had shows that featured writers that are not white that are on staff. It was way, way too heavy handed the way he did this too. I listen, or used to listen, to a good amount of the shows on The Ringer, and all of the sudden guys like Tyler Tines and Van Lathan and Larry Wilmore just started "randomly" popping up as guests, or with their own shows. It was a bit much.

Yet, as he is want to do, Simmons was talking on his pod, again I don't listen anymore, and I guess he had made a statement with another white guy that works there, Ryen Rusillo, comparing Luka Doncic's assists to James Harden's. RD told me this, and I didn't think it would be much. I was reeling, upset about college football, just kind of mopey. But I went on Twitter, just to see what the hubbub was all about, and man oh man was this a very, very underhanded racist comment made by Simmons. He said, "Luka's assists are like Bird's- they're not cheap assists... like the James Harden type of assists".

Let that sink in for a minute. He is saying that a white point guard, who he is comparing to another white player, has better assists than a black man that has revolutionized the way offense is played in the NBA. Also, how is any assist cheap I ask? They all do the same thing. They all lead to a bucket. It doesn't have to be fancy or whipped around the perimeter or anything. An assist is an assist is an assist. Harden, Doncic, LeBron, KD, Russ, all of their assists are the same, at least to me. It's not like these guys are hunting assists. I am not a Harden guy too. He is a great, great offensive player, I just find his brand of basketball boring. But his assists are just as important or special as anyone else's in the league. His lobs are also very useful because he gets teams to collapse on him, leaving the dunker wide open. He is such a threat from the outside, that when he up fakes from three, he usually has two or more guys open, leaving them with wide open looks. If anything, Harden's assists are the opposite of cheap. He is getting guys the cleanest looks they will ever find in the NBA. And Doncic is a great player too, but he is not on Harden's level yet. Doncic is a fine young player, one of the better players in the league, but guys like Bill Simmons, and the majority of the staff at The Ringer are so horny for a white savior in the NBA.

Simmons has made the Ringer in his racist image. The majority of his hires are writers who have, at one time, worked for him already or for the Celtics. That's why they all loved the Gordon Hayward signing when it happened, loved the Brad Stevens hire, but bristle when Marcus Smart calls someone out, or when Jaylen Brown goes on TV and talks eloquently about systemic racism. People like Simmons don't want to see that because he grew up watching a player whose nickname was "The Hick from French Lick". And Larry Bird was great, one of the best. I'm not calling him out, I'm calling out Boston fans that opine for the days when he was the star of the team. For Simmons to say this, and to take the side of Doncic, to call Harden's assists "cheap", it is lazy and hackey and he is trying so hard to be cool. Simmons is no better than anyone that works at Barstool Sports, a horrendously awful website, he just has the ESPN recognition to his name. I have to assume there has always been an underlying racism within Simmons, and now that he is older, it is starting to rear its head. He is trying to be a hip guy, but he comes off as a wannabe and a dork. He makes these grand declarations, and then tries to backtrack immediately.

Simmons is a phony, a hack, the type of guy that reminisces of his high school days, and now, a blatant racist. Since I read this quote and did some more research, I have unsubscribed from anything and everything involving his company. I don't want anything to do with him, or the myriad of white men he tends to hire time and time again. I'm not sure my unsubscribing will do much, but hey, if half the people who read this do the same, maybe we can make Bill Simmons admit he is a racist, misogynistic dickhead one day, and he will get his comeuppance. Here's hoping.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty remembers the greatness of Daryl Dawkins, Chocolate Thunder

We found one backboard spared by Chocolate Thunder

Last week, Daryl Dawkins, a true basketball legend unexpectedly passed away.

Daryl Dawkins was only 58 years old and died of an apparent heart attack. I didn't quite know how to digest this news. It's a real bummer that he passed away, but why was I letting it effect me? I didn't know him personally, I was just a big fan of his. I took the weekend to let it all sink in. I've come to the conclusion that, it upset me so much because he was one of the primary reasons I got into to basketball. I can remember being a young kid, maybe 8 or 9 years old, and starting to get heavily into basketball. This was right around the time that one of my all time favorite players, Shawn Kemp, was at the peak of his game. He was leading the Sonics to 50 plus win seasons and deep runs in the playoffs. What I liked so much about Kemp was how ferociously he dunked a basketball. He attacked the rim with fervor. That rim was going to bear the brunt of Kemp's anger. I loved it. My father, who was my basketball coach all the way up to high school, told me that if I liked Shawn Kemp and dunking so much, I needed to watch this former player, Daryl Dawkins. At that time, I thought, oh, this is just some old player my dad likes and he will show me how fundamentally sound he was as a player, and while he may be able to dunk, there's no way he'd be on Shawn Kemp's level. I couldn't have been more wrong. With my dad being the coolest person I know, he showed me videos of Daryl Dawkins shattering backboards. There was no fundamental talk, or coach speak coming from him, he wanted to show me who the first, true ferocious dunker they had in the NBA. For all the power Kemp brought to dunking, he was not on Daryl Dawkins level. I'd never seen a backboard shatter before. I had heard about it, but seeing it on a taped VHS video was insanely awesome. I couldn't believe that a player could do that.

Not only did my father want to show me videotapes of Daryl Dawkins, but I also learned from him that, Dawkins went straight to the NBA out of high school, much like Shawn Kemp did. This was way before the Kevin Garnett's, Kobe Bryant's and LeBron James of the world were doing it. Going to the pros straight from high school was a very foreign concept until about 15 years ago. The fact that Daryl Dawkins was ABA and NBA ready at the age of 18 is incredible. Basketball back then was rough and a grown mans game. Some 18 year old punk kid didn't belong in the league. Well, Dawkins and Moses Malone changed that idea. Instead of playing in the ABA, Dawkins renounced his NCAA eligibility and declared for the 1975 NBA draft. He was the fifth overall pick to the Philadelphia 76ers(this was when they weren't a joke of a franchise). He was so big and grown looking, that Walt Frazier, according to Wikipedia, said that he bets his high school teachers called him, "Mr. Daryl". That's insane. His first two years in the league were tough because he was so raw. He had huge expectations, but it takes players, especially 18 year old kids, to develop. Remember, Kobe and Garnett weren't stars right away either. But, by his third season, he was getting regular minutes and earned respect from former NBA legends like, Julius Erving, Doug Collins and World B Free. They were all on the same team too. The following season, Dawkins was part of a nucleus that led the 76ers to the Finals, which they lost in 6 games to the Lakers. He averaged 14 points, and almost 9 rebounds a game. That may not sound like a lot, but when you remember who his teammates were, that's pretty damn impressive. This was also the season that saw him shatter his first backboard. It was so amazing and had never been seen before, that he earned what might be the coolest nickname of all time in any sport. Teammates and opponents began to call him, "Chocolate Thunder". Damn, that's a kick ass nickname. He shattered another backboard that same season and the NBA made a rule that if you shatter the board, you'd be fined and suspended. That was a stupid rule.

Dawkins became so famous for his dunks, he started naming them. Some of the names were, "The Rim Wrecker" and the "Look Out Below". He was so innovative and cool. If he had played in today's NBA, he'd be ultra famous. Unfortunately for him and the 76ers, their postseasons were met with facing hall of famers. They lost to a Laker team led by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and they consistently faced the famous Larry Bird led Celtic teams. It was never easy for them. Dawkins was eventually traded to the Houston Rockets for Moses Malone. The year he was traded, the 76ers won the title, led by Moses Malone. After half a season in Houston, Dawkins joined the Nets. He played well for two seasons, but then injuries crept up on his body. He tried to make several comebacks, but he was never the electric player that he was while on the 76ers. He even played for the Harlem Globetrotters, spent time overseas and coached for awhile, but all us basketball fans remember him shattering backboards while playing in Philadelphia. So, when the news came of his death, as I said earlier, I was upset. I had heard him just recently on Bill Simmons former podcast, "The BS Report" during All Star Weekend and he sounded like he was in good health. I guess it goes to show, you never know what is going to happen.

Daryl Dawkins was a great, legendary basketball player and dunker. He was eccentric, smart and a star in his short career. I love that my father showed me those videos and I'm so happy that I got to see him shatter those backboards. He had the coolest nickname of all time too. You will be missed "Chocolate Thunder", and I hope you're shattering backboards wherever you are right now.

Rest In Peace.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and co host of the X Millennial Man. He named his biggest dunk The Duece. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.