Chuck Klosterman NYT piece - Must Read

[d_wagz]

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/02/sports/playmagazine/02play-klosterman.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&pagewanted=all

edit: tip of the cap to the perk is a beast blog

[EvadedHavoc]

Jeez no offense but thats one heck of a quote. Cut it down a bit. Awesome find btw

[celtsfan0254]

good find

[Dogen]

yes, nice. I'll read all of it when I get time.

Incidentally, I don't think it is legal to quote an entire article. You can show the link, and an excerpt, but not the whole article.

[BillessuR6]

These Scal quotes about KG are the best part:

[RoyHobbs]

Overall, it was okay. It contained a lot of factual errors, though. Doesn't the New York Times have editors? (KG, an 8-time all-star?)

The passage I most took exception to was:

Though he averages only 2 points a night (and was previously an object of widespread vitriol among the Celtic faithful), he has become the paradoxical crowd favorite of the Fleet Center, perhaps not coincidentally because (a) this is Boston and (b) he is the only white member of the team.

Three things wrong with this:

1) The Celtics don't play in the Fleet Center;

2) Scal isn't the only white player on the team;

3) The stereotypical view of Boston as a racist city is overplayed, lazy, and inaccurate.

[Gant]

Great article except for the obligatory and ironically biased racism knock on Boston. The only bias here is from the writer himself.

"All of this superficial uncoolness seems to give Scalabrine a kind of abstract advantage: he comes across as likable and self-aware. Though he averages only 2 points a night (and was previously an object of widespread vitriol among the Celtic faithful), he has become the paradoxical crowd favorite of the Fleet Center, perhaps not coincidentally because (a) this is Boston and (b) he is the only white member of the team."

...except for Pollard. The "this is Boston" comment makes me tired. It's over. It's in the past. Deval Patrick is governor and won the statehouse easily. Time to move on NY Times guy.

The rest of the piece is top notch.

[Dogen]

Yeah, the inaccuracies were annoying. It's a nice long article by the NYT, but something of a backhanded compliment, too.

NYT, Scot Pollard says hi.

[DorfonCeltics]

LOL, I still find myself calling it the Fleet Center from time to time. Old habits die hard.

[celticfan42487]

wait so you consider the FleetCenter an old habit and not the Gardan?

[DorfonCeltics]

wait so you consider the FleetCenter an old habit and not the Gardan?

Well they're completely different buildings. To be honest, I never saw a game in the old garden so the Fleet/TD Bank Garden has always been home for me. I almost think it's sacreligious to call the new building "The Garden" so you might understand why I slip up time to time and call it the Fleet Center.

That and TD Bank North Garden is such a long name for an arena.

[Cyclical]

Thanks for the find wagz.

Guys, there's no NYTimes bias here - Chuck is a life-long Celtics fan. If you ever get the chance to read his book Sex, Drugs, and Coco Puffs he has a big section in there about about growing up as a Celtics fan in the 80's. Good stuff, though he entire book can be a bit tiresome. Overall, a pretty sharp guy.

[UGA Hayes]

I love his articles. He is such a good writer. If you read between the lines he wrote that entire article with very little cooperation from the team which is impressive.

[Celtic Esquire]

Fantastic article. Props to the OP for the find.

[SeizeCoup]

Thanks for posting.

I sort of liked the "winning helps sleeping" angle, but he didn't follow through, and that last line was a weak attempt.


Also, I thought people were done hating on our (perceived lack-of) depth? This team has played well in the absence of both KG and Ray. And that was before we added PJ. If Cassell goes through then depth is a STRENGTH! We are one of the deepest teams in the league! They are all productive players. Most of our bench could start somewhere else in this league, some on good teams.

Powe
Davis
PJ Brown
Cassell
House
Po-Z
TA

Talent! That squad would probably have more wins than the Knicks.

[I love heinsohn]

NYTimes.com corrected the only white boy on the team quote, but left in "Fleet Center". Maybe someone can check out which appears in the print version this weekend...

[SonicYouth34]

Best quote from the article:

"Of all the Celtics, Scalabrine is the only one who actively wants to be interviewed. He is also the least intimidating pro athlete I have ever met. He has been in the N.B.A. seven years and was signed by Boston for $15 million, so he

[GuyClinch]

The stereotypical view of Boston as a racist city is overplayed, lazy, and inaccurate.

Oh come on Roy. The idea that a largely white city roots hard for their white player on the team is hardly 'racist." It's not much different then how the Dominicans in the area would all come out for Pedro.

Like it or not people identify more with people of their own color/race/backaround/language etc. And they tend to root for them more. This is what Larry Bird was getting at when he said the league could use more white stars.

I am mystified at this belief that people in Boston are "colorblind" they are most assuredly not - talk to any man of color. Don't get me wrong I don't think Boston is particularly "racist" but that doesn't equal identical treatment.

People treat ANYONE who is more like them more favorably. In the Democratic contest (where lets be honest the two candidates are pretty darn close on the issues) women vote for - get this women! Men vote for get this - the man! It turns out here that sex trumps race but even here we see things like more women of color voting for Obama and so on..

By the same token it would be a cold day in hell before a Jew or atheist gets elected Prez because their are not that many jewish people or athiests out there.

Pete

[GreenMachine]

LOL - 'Scal is one of only two white guys' - My first thought was... ONLY 2 - but then... I couldn't even figure out who the other one is...

I had to look it up. Ha. Scotty P.

[RoyHobbs]

The stereotypical view of Boston as a racist city is overplayed, lazy, and inaccurate.

Oh come on Roy. The idea that a largely white city roots hard for their white player on the team is hardly 'racist." It's not much different then how the Dominicans in the area would all come out for Pedro.

Like it or not people identify more with people of their own color/race/backaround/language etc. And they tend to root for them more. This is what Larry Bird was getting at when he said the league could use more white stars.

I am mystified at this belief that people in Boston are "colorblind" they are most assuredly not - talk to any man of color. Don't get me wrong I don't think Boston is particularly "racist" but that doesn't equal identical treatment.

People treat ANYONE who is more like them more favorably. In the Democratic contest (where lets be honest the two candidates are pretty darn close on the issues) women vote for - get this women! Men vote for get this - the man! It turns out here that sex trumps race but even here we see things like more women of color voting for Obama and so on..

By the same token it would be a cold day in hell before a Jew or atheist gets elected Prez because their are not that many jewish people or athiests out there.

Pete

Do you think fans root for Scal because of his skin color? If so, we're watching different teams. Also, while Klosterman might not come out and say it directly, he's playing on a well-known stereotypical view of Boston as a racist city. That view extends well beyond sports, and showing favoritism to white athletes.

As for your thoughts regarding identity politics, while there is something to that, I wonder why an African-American man is winning his party's nomination over a white woman and a white man (John Edwards). There are many, many more white women and white men than there are black men. More than anything else, people vote for 1) sound bites and 2) charisma.