Published: February 26, 2009
Some people might say that when you get to New York City, then you’ve finally ‘made it’. They say that once you’ve found yourself in the City, then you’ve hit the big time.
Nate Robinson has ‘made it’, but that was almost taken away from him before the trading deadline. He survived and so Robinson, who is generously listed at 5′9″, will give Knicks fans plenty of reasons to cheer in the coming weeks.
Yet, this past week, he was under fire for doing what 24-year-old would be doing on the world’s biggest stage — enjoying himself. You’ve seen the highlights and read it about it on the computer (no one reads newspapers, right?) since then. Robinson, after making a 3-pointer and being fouled, walked over to actor Will Ferrell and gave him a fist bump. After the game, Robinson presented his favorite actor the ‘Kryptonate’ jersey from the Slam Dunk Contest.
Robinson shaked-and-baked his way to 41 points off the bench and instead of people talking about is on the court feat, pundits in the area began to question if there was room in the game for what Robinson did. People didn’t appreciate the fact that Robinson took time away from the game to acknowledge Ferrell in the crowd.
First, the fact that Ferrell is at a Knicks’ game should be acknowledged. Yes, Ferrell is in the city because he is currently starring on Broadway, but he was still enjoying himself at the game. And you know why? Robinson stepped up his game and carried the team to a win.
Robinson was just doing his job — helping his team win and entertaining the crowd. Imagine being a young kid and seeing Robinson carve up a defense en route to 40-plus. Don’t you think that same kid will want to watch the Knicks again? Maybe he’ll ask his parents for a Robinson jersey?
Being a professional athlete is a job, sure, but there are more responsibilities than just playing the game. Not every player will be a role model, but kids will still look up to him.
But, Mike, that means kids are going to see Robinson stopping in the middle of the game and acknowledging the crowd. He is setting a bad example.
Okay, well think of who you admire and look up to at this moment? Now go outside, or to your local court, and dominate the game. Picture your idol (or if you want to make it realistic, that special someone you’re always trying to impress) on the sideline and then pushing a one-handed bounce pass through the lane for a dunk or hitting a pull up jumper in the lane.
Multiply that by 1,000,000 because your local court isn’t Madison Square Garden or the NBA. Something tells me you’re going to acknowledge that person on the sideline.
What Robinson did is no different than Shaquille O’Neal snacking on some popcorn after diving into the stands or Reggie Miller jawing at Spike Lee.
Robinson is known to be a kid at heart and he was enjoying the fact that he left Ferrell with a great Garden moment.
Instead of getting on Robinson’s case for having fun, realize that he is one of the guys to root for in the league. In the words of Ron Burdundy, “Don’t act like you’re not impressed.”
One Comment on "Much Ado About Nothing"
rashad on Fri, 27th Feb 2009 12:14 pm
Amen. It was funny.