Like sparks said in the comments section of the Wizards-Hornets recap, this team complains too damn much when things aren't going their way.
No, scratch that. They don't complain too much, they whine. And bellow. And wail.
It had been a while since I'd heard it, but early in the season, David "Fluffy" West used to shout 'And One' every time he went up to score in the post. It was the impetus of the first nickname I gave him, but he had slowly gotten away from it. Last night, against the Wiz, it was back in full force.
Just for giggles(and to make my eyes bleed), I rewound the game on my TIVO and started counting the number of times he shouted it, beginning in the second quarter. I got up to six and stopped.
Okay. If the refs aren't calling it the first or second time, screaming about it the fifth time is just going to piss them off. Shut the hell up and go up stronger. It's also gotten to be a team-wide issue. I've even spotted Peja, who avoids contact as much as possible, staring at refs with a disbelieving grin on his face.
I can only conclude our team's success is breeding arrogance, because they don't act this way when they are being abused by a good team. They reserve their petulance for the games against teams they think beneath them.(See Portland early in the season, the Timberwolves, the Wizards) Apparently, they believe those teams shoud lie down, and if they don't, it's the refs fault.
I got news for ya, Hornets. I love ya guys, but no one is scared of you. You've proven nothing. Get after it and put those teams down.
Tonight we've got the Knicks. Overall, they are terrible, but if we are low on energy and soft on defense, they will shoot us out of the building. Get after them.
9 fluffy comments post your own
Ron Hitley
03/03/08 05:12 AM
I agree 100%. We're beating ourselves by focusing on the refs rather than correcting our own stupid mistakes. I remember a few plays last night where there was a no call and we spent a few seconds staring at the ref in disbelief rather than busting ass back on defense. So. Annoying.
www.hornets247.com #1
Mike W
03/03/08 05:41 AM
I thought the refereeing in both Wizards games this year was shody. But that being said, a good team overcomes the natural error that comes with refereeing and might just happen to favor one team over another one game. I really felt that the Wizards defense didn't do a lot to slow us down tonight, we just, for whatever reason, couldn't hit shots. It's hard to take when the rim seems smaller and you can't find calls, but this team also has to learn how to forget games like this. It was horrible and I can't imagine a Hornets fan who wasn't paralyzed with dismay in the 4th quarter as the Wizards inexplicably and inexorably pulled away. But the Knicks aren't going to feel bad for us. They're going to work really hard to get their third win of the season. So we need to get in there and turn things around, no matter how the calls go.
hornetshype.com #2
sparks
03/03/08 07:02 AM
ryan, you took my suggestion! now all you need is a pic of tyson/west or chris looking frustrated near a ref. i gotta say i actually raised by right arm sorta in pride when i saw my name mentioned. i'm such a dork. i love that peja comment. he does look at refs with a grin on his face like"hey ref, did you just say that? i mean come on!" i noticed it during our last spurs game in san antontio where bruce bowen was touching and grabbing as peja was holding the ball. its not just against bad team when they whine. against good teams they do it just as much. they have to realize not all bad teams give up, and they actally get up to play the hornets, just like the hornets get up to play the spurs, dallas, suns etc. great post, just needs a pic of someone whining!
#3
Mikey
03/03/08 07:04 AM
Okay, people in the Arena know me as "The Yelling Guy", and I get on the officials pretty often. But being a man who used to score and referee high school round ball and summer collegiate leagues, I just want to see those guys own their calls, rotate well, and be in the correct position to make the correct call. We are all human though, and I understand that, but I can rag onthem because I am a fan.The <strong>FIRST</strong> thing they teach you at any officals' clinic is that the players <strong>play</strong> and the officials <strong>call</strong> the games. In general, when players start trying to call the games, that means they aren't playing. The Hornets are a perfect example of this behavior. During the Month of January, I saw some poorly officiated games.We were kicking everybody'sbutt though,so no one cared. Lately, if the Hornets don't get a couple of calls early that they think they should get, it takes them our of their game. It seems to affect every facet of their game all night. Officials are human. If you act like an idiot, and/or try to show them up, they are going to remember it. They will either lay a technical foul on you, or be less inclined to give you the next call. There are also ways to get your point across to an official without making your eyes bulge out of your head, flail your arms wildly, or punt the ball into the upper deck (had that happen to me once). Talk to an official during a timeout or play stoppage. Be calm. Try to keep it to one or 2 statements. The longer you him and haw, the less likely you are getting your point across. The NBA has had alot of turnover of officals in the last 5 or so years. They are not going to get every call right, just as players aren't going to make every shot. Hornets... guys, just play. That's all I ask. Fear not though, fellow hornets fans.... I'll be back yelling at them again on Wednesday night.
#4
sparks
03/03/08 07:06 AM
*did you just <strong>see</strong> that? in ron's post about the all star game and getting to meet chris paul, ron mentioned that chris knows about his blog and reads it, right? it would be so cool if you got a big picture of chris for this post, and had his name in the title, something like "he baby faced criminal...stop acting like one" post a video of chris punching julius hodge in the balls.....lol, i just saw that this morning, its still so damn funny! <strong>"i'm calling you out chris"</strong> is a good title as well!
#5
sparks
03/03/08 07:10 AM
mikey, you should yell at the team for complaining to much...just kidding, you'd get jumped by hornets fans around you, maybe your own family and friends. do you know which team perfects looking back at a referree and not getting back on defense? The Nuggets! big reason why they suck defensively and are out of the playoff picture at the moment!
#6
Anonymous
03/03/08 07:17 AM
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/statistics?stat=teamstatmisc&sort=techs&league=nba&season=2008&seasontype=2&avg=pg&order=true&split=0 we are 9th in the league in technicals as a team. after last night, i think we just passed by kobe. the only reason the lakers have 30 techs is kobe. in all honesty, if he wasn't the superstar he is, he'd be suspended already for having too much tecnicals- the limit is 15, i think. both tyson and chris have 8. you can also argue that chris gets away with things since he's a star too. at least we aren't belligerent and wave our arms around. we just sulk, complain and look like we are about to cry, while the kobester looks like he wants to physically harm the ref. lol.
#7
Mike W
03/03/08 09:13 AM
According to Byron Scott, CP "has that same voice, smile, baby face [as Isaiah Thomas], that guy that you look at and say he is such a great guy, but on the court he is an assassin." (Quoted from the Daily News.) I had the read the article three times. I really thought he called CP the "baby faced criminal."
hornetshype.com #8
Emir lidan
03/03/08 01:32 PM
i especialy find this to be the case with west and chandler after they go down on a missed basket they just sit there talking to the refs looking like idiots meanwhile its 5 on 4 and usualy the other team scores paul annoys the refs a lot every game ive watched hes always talkin to them after a foul of him peja and mo pete i havent seen do anything to bad peja barely ever gets fouls on him he probly averages 1 or 2 per game
#9