Bad sports, good sports: Kobe Bryant continues to prove his ignorance

Posted on April 18th, 2011 by Alan Spoll

As a sports fan who sometimes dislikes certain athletes for no real reason, I always feel validated when one of those guys screws up and shows the world that my disdain may have something legitimate behind it. Kobe Bryant is one such athlete. Just a few months after angering the fans of the Denver Nuggets by calling them stupid for booing Carmelo Anthony, Bryant has made a much larger splash. On Tuesday, he was given a technical foul by referee Bennie Adams late in a Lakers game against the San Antonio Spurs. He responded by using a gay slur against Adams, which was caught on camera.

A professional game is a high stress event for the players, and they often react poorly to moments that don’t go their way. These reactions can vary from stoic disappointment to wild, screaming fits. Every once in a while, unfortunate words are uttered. That’s when we learn a lot more about the athletes that so many of us idolize, and what we learn is not always what we hoped to learn. Kobe has a lot of fans, and I hope that many of them were disgusted by his bigoted comment. He actually compounded his offense when he tried to apologize, saying “What I said last night should not be taken literally.” Awesome. So he wasn’t actually suggesting that Adams was a homosexual, and that is somehow supposed to excuse what he said. What an idiot. Of course, he has continued to refine his message as the days have gone by and he has had the time to be coached by members of the Lakers organization. Yes, Kobe, I am sure you are sorry. Sorry that all of this uproar is occurring and that you have once again been shown to be an immature, egotistical dope who should learn to keep his mouth shut. Whether or not he is actually sorry about what he said remains unknown.

I am not saying that no one ever says something in the heat of the moment that does not really represent what he feels deep down inside. I am just suggesting that these utterances seem far more likely to represent the speaker’s true feelings than not. Bryant’s history does not lead me to want to give him the benefit of the doubt. He deserves whatever scorn comes his way.

Bad sports, continued:

2) Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt was arrested on Tuesday after turning what would have been a simple traffic stop into something more. Rather than stopping for the officer who was attempting to pull him over for speeding, he drove away. Then, when he was found, he lied about being the driver of the vehicle. I expect this will not be the last time you read about Britt in the context of Bad Sports.

3) BSGS cover boy Jamarcus Russell, likely the biggest bust in NFL Draft history, has gone down yet another rung on the ladder to rock bottom. This time, he scared away John Lucas, a former NBA player and coach, who has spent years working with athletes who have gotten themselves in trouble due to drugs or other negative lifestyle choices. I guess even Lucas couldn’t get through to this guy. Sad.

4) Golfer Kevin Na, a one-time winner on the Asian Tour who has yet to win on the PGA Tour, carded an astonishing 16 on the ninth hole of the Texas Open on Thursday. Oof.

5) Former Phillies great Lenny Dykstra, a member of the 1993 team that made it to the World Series, was arrested this week for theft. He had a house that was being foreclosed upon and sold at auction to pay off some of his debts, and he reportedly removed some items from the house to either sell them himself or use them for his own purposes. The stolen property had significant value, and Dykstra seems likely to spend some time behind bars.

Good sports:

1) Tennis player Rafael Nadal won the Monte Carlo Masters for the seventh consecutive time on Sunday. Nadal continues to show why he is the number one player in the world.

2) Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware has stated that he will not take the money he is due to be paid from the NFL Players’ Association lockout fund, preferring to leave the money in the pool for players in greater need. This is not a huge deal, but it is an admirable way to handle the current situation.

3) Tim Lincecum, an all-star pitcher for the San Francisco Giants, has donated 25 thousand dollars to a fund created to assist Bryan Stow, the Giants fan who was attacked and beaten by two Dodgers fans after a game last month.

Bad sports, good sports appears every Monday.

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Alan Spoll

Alan Spoll is a software quality assurance director from the suburbs of Philadelphia where he lives with his wonderful wife and children. He has spent his entire life as a passionate fan of the Eagles, Phillies, Sixers, Flyers, and Penn State. Recent Phillies success aside, you will understand his natural negativity. Follow me on Twitter - @DocAlan02