Jerry Sloan and Twitter
Growing up in McLeansboro, Ill., Jazz coach Jerry Sloan's family didn't get a phone for the first time until his junior year in high school. So you can only imagine the fun Wednesday in trying to explain Twitter to the soon-to-be 67-year-old.
One of the local television stations asked Sloan about Charlie Villanueva sending a tweet (update) from the locker room at halftime of Milwaukee's game Sunday against Boston and the resulting fallout with Bucks coach Scott Skiles.
"I don't follow that," Sloan said. "I don't even have a computer. I don't know how to turn one on. I don't know what you're talking about. I'm going to be totally honest. How would you do that?"
Sloan was told that Villanueva could do it through his cell phone. This brought more confusion. "I have a phone, but I don't know how to use it that way," Sloan said. "I wish I did, but I didn't want to be aggravated. I've just kind of been that way all along."
Sloan has had a no cell phone rule on the team bus - - the Jazz's p.r. staff often has to text us with updates about practice times and whatnot - - but is realistic about how closely his players are adhering to it.
"I know they're back there on the bus, hiding around, doing that stuff," Sloan said.
Deron Williams walked by and was told we were trying to explain Twitter to Sloan. "Coach doesn't like it when we text," said Williams, who claimed to know little about Twitter. He said nobody would even think about doing it at halftime as long as Sloan was coach.
The Jazz did have a moment earlier in the season, Sloan said, when a player's phone went off during a meeting. "Years ago, I would have put my foot on it and squeezed on it," Sloan said. "I'm too old to do that. I'm afraid I'll slip off it and hurt myself."
When it comes time to promote Sloan for NBA Coach of the Year, the Jazz really should create a Twitter feed in his honor.
* * *
There's not a lot I'd pay to see in the NBA, but I definitely want to be there the next time Kobe Bryant plays Smush Parker, assuming Parker ever makes it back to the league.
For whatever reason, an interview Parker did last summer with MSG Network started getting attention yesterday. In it, Parker calls playing for the Lakers an overrated experience and says the team's problems started and ended with Kobe Bryant.
Jim Rome did a segment on the interview on his television show and a YouTube clip of the original interview is available here. Why do I bring this up? If only to share my four favorite memories of covering Parker's time with the Lakers.
No 1: After Bryant had his 81-point game, we went into the locker room to ask his teammates what it was like to be a part of history. Parker proceeded to call the victory over Toronto "a good team win" and credit the Lakers' second-half defense. Nothing like trying to rain on one of the greatest single performances ever.
No. 2: While Bryant regularly did pregame interviews, Parker refused to talk to reporters before games. He continued to do so even after being admonished by the Lakers' p.r. staff. This led to a string of bewildered writers who would come into the locker room only to get blown off by Parker.
No. 3: On an offday in Indianapolis - - Feb. 1, 2007, I looked it up - - Phil Jackson told us that Parker was openly jealous of the three-year extension Brian Cook had signed before the season. This, even though Parker had started 128 consecutive games and was playing his way into a big payday after the season.
"It may not be recompense and reward for what he's doing for us, but yet it's a valuable opportunity for him in the future and that bodes really well," Jackson said. Parker was making the league minimum at the time, but, alas, you can't rewrite contracts in the middle of the season.
No. 4: Parker had been clashing with Jackson and had been benched in the fourth quarter of consecutive games in April 2007. He said he needed to get back to having fun on the court and finished with 25 points against Phoenix. The only problem? The Lakers lost the game and Parker committed one fourth-quarter turnover when he tried to throw a behind-the-back pass on the break.
This led to another memorable quote after the game. "I had a ball," Parker said. "We lost, but I had fun." No surprise that Parker started this season playing with Rio Grande Valley in the NBA Development League and is now with a team in Guangdong, China.
--Ross Siler
One of the local television stations asked Sloan about Charlie Villanueva sending a tweet (update) from the locker room at halftime of Milwaukee's game Sunday against Boston and the resulting fallout with Bucks coach Scott Skiles.
"I don't follow that," Sloan said. "I don't even have a computer. I don't know how to turn one on. I don't know what you're talking about. I'm going to be totally honest. How would you do that?"
Sloan was told that Villanueva could do it through his cell phone. This brought more confusion. "I have a phone, but I don't know how to use it that way," Sloan said. "I wish I did, but I didn't want to be aggravated. I've just kind of been that way all along."
Sloan has had a no cell phone rule on the team bus - - the Jazz's p.r. staff often has to text us with updates about practice times and whatnot - - but is realistic about how closely his players are adhering to it.
"I know they're back there on the bus, hiding around, doing that stuff," Sloan said.
Deron Williams walked by and was told we were trying to explain Twitter to Sloan. "Coach doesn't like it when we text," said Williams, who claimed to know little about Twitter. He said nobody would even think about doing it at halftime as long as Sloan was coach.
The Jazz did have a moment earlier in the season, Sloan said, when a player's phone went off during a meeting. "Years ago, I would have put my foot on it and squeezed on it," Sloan said. "I'm too old to do that. I'm afraid I'll slip off it and hurt myself."
When it comes time to promote Sloan for NBA Coach of the Year, the Jazz really should create a Twitter feed in his honor.
* * *
There's not a lot I'd pay to see in the NBA, but I definitely want to be there the next time Kobe Bryant plays Smush Parker, assuming Parker ever makes it back to the league.
For whatever reason, an interview Parker did last summer with MSG Network started getting attention yesterday. In it, Parker calls playing for the Lakers an overrated experience and says the team's problems started and ended with Kobe Bryant.
Jim Rome did a segment on the interview on his television show and a YouTube clip of the original interview is available here. Why do I bring this up? If only to share my four favorite memories of covering Parker's time with the Lakers.
No 1: After Bryant had his 81-point game, we went into the locker room to ask his teammates what it was like to be a part of history. Parker proceeded to call the victory over Toronto "a good team win" and credit the Lakers' second-half defense. Nothing like trying to rain on one of the greatest single performances ever.
No. 2: While Bryant regularly did pregame interviews, Parker refused to talk to reporters before games. He continued to do so even after being admonished by the Lakers' p.r. staff. This led to a string of bewildered writers who would come into the locker room only to get blown off by Parker.
No. 3: On an offday in Indianapolis - - Feb. 1, 2007, I looked it up - - Phil Jackson told us that Parker was openly jealous of the three-year extension Brian Cook had signed before the season. This, even though Parker had started 128 consecutive games and was playing his way into a big payday after the season.
"It may not be recompense and reward for what he's doing for us, but yet it's a valuable opportunity for him in the future and that bodes really well," Jackson said. Parker was making the league minimum at the time, but, alas, you can't rewrite contracts in the middle of the season.
No. 4: Parker had been clashing with Jackson and had been benched in the fourth quarter of consecutive games in April 2007. He said he needed to get back to having fun on the court and finished with 25 points against Phoenix. The only problem? The Lakers lost the game and Parker committed one fourth-quarter turnover when he tried to throw a behind-the-back pass on the break.
This led to another memorable quote after the game. "I had a ball," Parker said. "We lost, but I had fun." No surprise that Parker started this season playing with Rio Grande Valley in the NBA Development League and is now with a team in Guangdong, China.
--Ross Siler
1:20 PM
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2 Comments:
so i'm not the only one who noticed that Parker said "team defense" won the game against Toronto when Kobe scored 81 - i'm a Laker fan & always support any Laker(most of the time) but i never liked Parker
http://twitter.com/jerrysloan
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