Derrick Rose Criticism An Indictment Of The Media
By Anthony F. Irwin
@AnthonyIrwinNBA
Getty Images
Derrick Rose recently committed the ultimate crime Tuesday: He was honest.
Saying that he was thinking about the “long term” and life after basketball, Rose was simply putting his long term well-being ahead of a regular season game in early November. Ask yourself: if you have a daughter and some ailment that precludes you from walking, and there was something that you could’ve done to walk her down the aisle one day – wouldn’t you take that opportunity?
Yes, that might be an extreme case, but can you blame Rose for trying to ensure he can walk later in life?
Look at the situation, Rose has become the butt-end of every injury joke, having missed much of the last two seasons with crushing ailments. That he might be jaded after going through the excruciating recovery process twice shouldn’t be groundbreaking news. Before you judge him for that, watch Kevin McHale walk on the sidelines. Watch Phil Jackson (two hip replacements later) amble through Madison Square Garden.
Ever wondered where Bill Walton went? He was forced into hiatus because of lingering back issues that altogether kept him bed-ridden. You know what they all have in common, right? They played through injuries and sacrificed quality of life for our entertainment.
Look, we love to criticize athletes for being boring (I’m looking at you, Russell Wilson), but fans can’t have it both ways. What Rose said was honesty it its purest form. It was also very interesting; an athlete aware of and acknowledging life beyond their sport? Give me more of that.
Athletes are caught in lose-lose battles. If they’re boring, they’re knocked for that. If they’re honest, fans deconstruct and criticize from any and all angles. Instead, how about we listen to what he’s saying and try to understand where he’s coming from? The macho, play-though-anything, win-at-all-cost athletes are things of the past, and that’s probably a good thing.
One of the centerpieces of the NFL’s concussion lawsuit is the fact that players continue to hide concussions to stay in the game. Rose’s statements might mean the beginning of the end of that sad fact.
Anthony F. Irwin is an NBA, NFL, MLB and NCAA Football contributor for www.Rantsports.com. Follow him on Twitter, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google. Send him an email at .
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