Cleveland was done in by another Paul Pierce taking-over-the-game routine (35 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists) , Boston winning 114-107 in OT. Some credit to Danny Ainge ; with Antoine Walker counting the days until he can leave a floundering Atlanta club, Raef LaFrentz is asserting himself on the boards , particularly on the defensive end.
(Thankfully for everyone concerned, LeBron misheard the heckler and thought he was encourage to “please stop Paul Pierce)
Lest no one accuse Paul Silas of taking a cavalier attitude towards player dissent (sorry),the Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Branson Wright covers the Cavs’ coach and his unseemly spat with Eric Snow.
Paul Silas was an intense and often intimidating player who collected three championship rings during his 16-year career. Small scars on his face show Silas’ toughness. He has the same no-nonsense approach as a coach.
Silas displayed that attitude during the second quarter of the Cavaliers-Pistons game at The Palace in Auburn Hills on Thursday night when he confronted guard Eric Snow. The same Snow who is considered one of the good guys in the league because of his commitments to charities and community services.
t began when Silas put Snow in for Jeff McInnis early in the second quarter. Forward Anderson Varejao turned the ball over on an eight-second violation. That upset Silas because Snow didn’t handle the ball. Silas quickly yelled for McInnis to replace Snow.
As Snow came off the court, he asked Silas why he was replaced and Silas said that he didn’t want to hear it. Snow cursed and Silas assumed those words were directed at him. Silas had to be restrained by assistant coach Kenny Natt as he got into Snow’s face. Silas sent Snow to the locker room. Snow returned with the team after halftime, but he remained on the bench.
Silas declined to comment about the heated conversation after the game, but he became irate after a reporter continued to ask him about Snow. Silas wanted to know if the reporter understood that he didn’t want to discuss the matter anymore and his comments about “Am I speaking Chinese?” followed. That comment received national attention.
Snow was suspended without pay for tonight’s game against Boston. Though it should be said that if Silas were speaking Chinese, there are players and fans that would’ve understood him (though presumably not Cleveland beat writers).
Even after watching the highlights of Allan Iverson dropping 56 on the Bucks this evening, I’m baffled. I mean, how difficult would it have been for Milwaukee to have quintuple-teamed A.I.?
Speaking of the Eric Snow-Paul Silas incident, did anybody see Magic Johnson in studio on TNT this past week? He was gleefully celebrating the fact that Silas stood up to one of the “players of today”.
Never mind that Eric Snow is not exactly a 21st century thug – the NBA gave him a sportsmanship award a few years ago.
But Magic has some gall, considering how he got Paul Westhead canned almost twenty-five years ago.
I guess the only crime that Eric Snow is guilty of is the sin of not being the franchise player. I wonder what would happen if LeBron wanted Silas out of Cleveland. Would Magic condemn him for that?
Sir Hoops, there is one key difference that I can think of. Magic ran Westhead out of town over philosophical differences rather than a disciplinary dispute. Though Johnson’s moves were widely decried at the time as a power play above his stature, let’s not forget that said coup was what started Pat Riley’s oily reign of terror and brought LA a string of championships.
As for Westhead, his ensuing tenure at Loyola Marymount was notable for a) the team taking 500 shots a game, b) no defense whatsoever, c) Hank Gathers dropping dead and d) providing a career launching pad for fashion plate Bo Kimble.
The Snow/Silas thing seems to be an isolated incident, at least for the former.
I agree 100 percent about the way things worked out for Riley/Westhead. That’s not what bothered me.
I just get bummed when I see retired and/or veteran athletes painting everyone with the broad brush of immaturity. Hey, wasn’t that the veteran Magic Johnson who – during his sad attempt at a comeback – who bumped an official? And isn’t that Charles Barkley sitting next to Magic in the TNT studios? The guy who spit on a young fan?
All I’m asking for is a little perspective. What Snow did was incredibly out of character, and for Magic to lump him in with a group of so-called malcontents – which is a much smaller group than some want you to believe – was wrong.
I wonder what the reaction would be if a young tattooed braided player spat on a young girl in 2004/05. And I say this as someone who has grown to truly enjoy Barkley.
Think before you speak – it’s not like Magic Johnson isn’t a professional commentator who has hosted his own talk show, and – forget it.
Tommy
to quote Fred Friendly on Magic Johnson, “a very talented….basketball player.”
The phenomena of the retired athlete posing as elder statesman is nothing new. I mean, who is Jim Brown to be giving advice to Maurice Clarett? What’s he advising him on, the proper way to throw a woman off a balcony?
All of that said, I was hopeful that Bill Lambier’s Mr. Miyagi-like sage guidance would’ve transformed the WNBA.
Re: Charles. He’s so damn funny that he usually gets a pass from anyone not named Mushnick for spiting at kids, throwing guys through windows, etc.