David Robinson Prompts Retraction ~ no title

With the Hall of Fame ceremony for one of the most storied classes of inductees in the history of basketball, I have to post a retraction of sorts. It's not for anything I’ve officially written. Nevertheless, it's something that needs to be said.

I’ve done a bit of writing about the NBA needing bad guys, and I stand by that. Stockton, for all his admirable qualities including the tough as nails disposition you don’t get with the long shorts generation, could play that heel with the best of them. However, on the eve of “the greatest HoF class ever” induction, I feel the need to write a kind of paean for the good guys. I’m not talking the image guys, which MJ spawned. I’m talking the guys who don’t reach for the lime light but instead strive to be the best they can be. The guys who put a premium on winning. I’m talking about the Spurs. I’m talking David Robinson.

I realize I've vacillated fairly widely on what I want to see out of the NBA. I guess I'm just needy. I mean, I’m 24, what do you expect? Professionalism? Sportsmanship? Allowance of footage of myself to be leaked? Alright, I’ll get off that already.

A little personal history. Growing up a Lakers fan, I hated the Spurs. I hated them almost as much as I hated the Jazz. An enmity grew in me for these teams for the simple reason that I saw them thwarting my beloved Lakers from storming the promised land again. I didn't hate the Bulls because it didn't seem anyone could beat them in the Jordan-era, and the transitioning and young Lakers of the nineties couldn't even make it past the Western Conference perennials. Thus, those perennials became the perceived antagonists on the great tapestry of basketball narrative for one young snagamat. The Lakers, of course, fit perfectly into the ro

le of dramatic hero, complete with tragic hubris and the potential for resultant catharsis.

Oedipus and Antigone, originally uploaded by litmuse.

But I had a problem. I liked the Spurs. I liked how Robinson took a secondary role and focused on defense to promote Duncan's emergence. I wished Shaq and Kobe could be like that. Even when they defeated the '03 Lakers squad, and I misted up right along with Derek Fisher, I still found it hard pressed to truly loathe the Spurs. It was a troubling time for me as a burgeoning fan. I was heading off to college, and some catalytic force named LeBron James was on the horizon. In Lala-land, however, things could not be more confusing for me. We did not win the championship for the first time in three years, and I'd become spoiled. I had become used to winning when we weren't supposed to, at the expense of solid, solid Blazers and Kings teams. Further exacerbating my confusion as a Lakers fan was the addition of Karl Malone to the roster. How could I continue to harbor ill will against all things Jazz when we'd acquired one of their golden sons?

It was hard times for me for a few years, until Phil Jackson came back into the fold. The tapestry was becoming unwoven before my eyes, and there was no discernible narrative for me to follow. The Spurs were anticlimactic. They did not proffer a new beginning or an end to an era (which is partly attributable to Robinson's inclusion in what felt like the old guard by then), rather they were the representation of divinie time come to confound us all. They were timeless; they blended all times into one, into what Spinoza deemed the singular substance of existence (or what Hoffman's character in I <3 Huckabees terms "the blanket"). Perhaps now I'd be able to glean more substance out of the very un-wild oats being sown in those years. I'm a little more perceptive, I hope. Thus, kind of, the impetus for this retraction. I took out my frustration on the Spurs, and their buddies in yarn splitting the Detroit Pistons. My lambasting of Chauncey Billups is fairly well documented. My deep seeded condemnation of the Spurs has gone more thoroughly hidden, but it definitely existed and definitely colored my perceptions of those seasons the Lakers were losers. (Remembers Smush Parker, shakes head) Don't get me wrong. I still rooted for the Lakers. Never let it be said that I passed up a chance to call myself not a fair weather fan. But it was so painful. I had to find a release for my suffering. The Spurs became the chosen target.

PSP Wallpaper San Antonio Spurs, originally uploaded by spursdotcom.

In college, I had a Tim-ber poster on my walls, with Shaq cutting down a Tim Duncan tree. Most egregiously, I retrospectively hated on David Robinson's game. I hadn't even been a fan at the time, but his 71 point outburst in 1994 to beat out Shaq for the scoring title was the ultimate slap in the face, especially as it came in LA albeit against the B-team and admittedly at a time before Shaq donned the purple and gold. Still, I was retroactively incensed. Under his nice guy persona, I believed Robinson was another stat grabbing egocentrist. I was wrong, and I know it now. First off, the 71 points. Who wouldn't have taken that opportunity? And who doesn't think Shaq needed a bit of putting in his place at that point? After coming clean about my Shaq fandom, I'm ready to admit that Robinson shouldn't be held against a stat grabbing light for one night of his career. There are excellent posts up about Robinson, and you should at least check out the Painted Area's article comparing him to Oscar Robertson and probably should check out Dwyer's piece too. As for me, I'll end with my official retraction, and hopefully move on to being a better and more perceptive fan:

I was wrong about the Spurs. I've liked them throughout their run as champs and contenders. I apologize for only being able to say this now, when their time seems close to an end. I've always admired Tim Duncan's heady, steady play and his spot on leadership. I've admired the Spurs ability to salvage careers, even when they stole Robert Horry from the Lakers, and their habit of turning low draft picks into outstanding players. If I wasn't raised a Lakers fan, I would probably be a Spurs fan. As it is, I will probably still relish their losses. Some yarns are not undone over night. I do recognize that I've been in denial. The Spurs were on par with the Lakers in the post-Jordan era, Tim Duncan is a phenomenal player and star, and David Robinson is the rare example of a professional athlete who can be seen as a role model for how he handled himself on and off the court.