NBA Philadelphia 76ers

Ellen Degeneres Helps Michael Carter-Williams Get Away From Basketball

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By @Greg_Sacidor

Eric Hartline - USA TODAY Sports

Eric Hartline – USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia 76ers‘ ongoing rebuilding process has undoubtedly taken a toll on Philadelphia’s loyal fanbase. But more importantly, it has already taken a toll on the 76ers’ players.

In an article written for former New York Yankee and future Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Derek Jeter’s new website The Players’ Tribune, Philadelphia 76ers point guard Michael Carter-Williams addressed the issues he has with the media referring to what the 76ers are doing as “tanking.” In his piece entitled Don’t Talk To Me About Tanking, Carter-Williams writes about how the losing habits of the 76ers have taken a toll on him over the past year.

Carter-Williams writes that “losing sucks,” and that he is bothered by how the media takes what the 76ers are doing out of context. He writes that he and his teammates “put in too much work to be treated like a joke” and that “nobody took the losses harder than we did.” So when the media continues to criticize what is going on down in South Philadelphia, how do players like Carter-Williams tune out the noise?

Every player must have their own routine to get away from basketball and all of the distractions. For Carter-Williams, it is by watching The Ellen Degeneres Show. You read that right, The Ellen Degeneres Show. Carter-Williams writes that he gets away from all of the losing that he and his Sixers teammates have been experiencing over the last year or so by taking time out every day to just do nothing else besides grabbing something to eat and watching The Ellen Degeneres Show with his stepfather.

Many people who watch the NBA look at what Sam Hinkie and the rest of the 76ers front office are doing and label it as “tanking.” But when it comes to the 76ers players, this description could not be more off-base. If you want to describe the front office’s approach as “tanking” go right ahead, but don’t associate that term with the players and coaches.

Every night head coach Brett Brown and his under-manned 76ers team leave everything they have out on the court. Some nights they shock a team and stay competitive for most of the game, other nights they simply get blown out right from the opening tap. But no matter what, they fight.

In a league where it is acceptable to walk through the last game of a long road trip, or take a night off in the middle of January, the 76ers’ approach is refreshing. These players know that they are fighting for their livelihoods, for their families. They go out there every night and use the opportunity they have been given by the 76ers as a way to catch the eye of the Sixers front office, or even the eye of the opposing team’s front office. They go out there every night to prove that they belong.

So when Carter-Williams writes that for one hour a day he gets away from everything basketball related by watching The Ellen Degeneres Show, it just goes to prove that although the front office may be “tanking,” he and his 76ers teammates certainly are not.

Greg Sacidor is a Philadelphia 76ers and NBA writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Greg_Sacidor or add him to your network on Google.

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