Stephen Jackson: The undersung star

[jdsingar]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/commentary/news/story?page=hill/100421

This is an interesting article on Jax. It addresses his public images vs. who he actually he is. The writer could just be painting a pretty picture. However, I haven't gotten anything but positive vibes from Jax since he has been with the team, much to my surprise.

Discuss.

[ammofan]

Great article.....but I thought I heard the author of this article got fired?

[QC Thundercats]

This is exactly the kind of article I was talking about in another thread that I wish the Charlotte reporters would write about. It goes in depth about a particular player, what motivates him, what he's like off the court.



Jackson's brother was beaten to death after being jumped by a group of people. So while Stephen knows it was wrong to go after the fans in Detroit, he also knows he wouldn't have been able to live with himself if he hadn't followed Ron Artest into the melee.This is something that I never knew about - while it doesn't justify his actions, it helps us to understand better maybe why he reacted that way, as maybe it was a subconscious way for him to be there for his brother.

And of course, we know community work is never reported because it isn't "interesting" enough, but I also thought it was interesting that there was a book club started by Baron Davis. There are many players that defy their stereotypes, and its good to see that Jax is a far more intellectual and intriguing persona than what we were told, not a hot-headed jerk who's always trying to start a fight like the tabloids want us to think.

[jdsingar]

This article was posted today, so I am guessing not. She has been suspended in the past for an incident where she compared the Boston Celtics to Hitler. :biggrin:

ESPN suspended espn.com writer Jemele Hill indefinitely after she drew references to Adolf Hitler and nuclear war in a column. ''Rooting for the Celtics is like saying Hitler was a victim,'' Hill wrote. ``It's like hoping Gorbachev would get to the blinking red button before Reagan.''

[jdsingar]

And of course, we know community work is never reported because it isn't "interesting" enough, but I also thought it was interesting that there was a book club started by Baron Davis. There are many players that defy their stereotypes, and its good to see that Jax is a far more intellectual and intriguing persona than what we were told, not a hot-headed jerk who's always trying to start a fight like the tabloids want us to think.

Yes, I found it interested that he reads. I am not trying to stereotype him as a black athlete; I could certainly see Baron Davis starting a book club. But I can definitely see how he would be open to reading the book that was mentioned, given his prior actions.

[rsxnova]

Well i guess we know where Jacks protective nature comes from. I respect him for that.

[spectre]

Gerald Wallace, who became the Bobcats' first NBA All-Star this season, didn't know what to think of Jackson at first. Would he be a volatile guy who undermined the team's success? Or would he be the missing piece the Bobcats needed?

Six months later, Wallace is dumbfounded as to why he ever worried.

"If you listen to you guys [the media] all the time, you think he's like, the devil," Wallace says. "We get him here and he's totally opposite. He's friendly. He's always laughing and he's always joking. It's different on the court with every player. He's passionate. He loves to play. He loves to win. But that's every player on the court. I think you guys just gave him a bad rep like he's a bad teammate and all this. When he got here, it was kind of a concern. But he's been a great teammate. No problems."
Good stuff from the all star. I know he was bummed about trading Raja, but it looks like it took Jax no time to lessen the blow in Crash's mind.

[teej]

As someone reading Gladwell right now, there's no way any "normal" athlete could read that, much less comprehend. I think our team, while not as talented as the other playoff teams, is one of, if not the, smartest team. GW was an elite student in HS, Jack is a "high-level" reader, Boris is super smart, Stevie is above-average, and from everything I've seen so is Hughes.

BBIQ > Talent at the NBA level.

[ajbry]

It was a solid article, but not even close to the first to address his reputation relative to who he actually is. There have been many of those, lol. Wikipedia's always a good place to start, too.

Also, these pieces from the last day or so about Jack from NBA.com (http://www.nba.com/2010/news/features/shaun_powell/04/20/sjax.feature/) and AOL Fanhouse (http://nba.fanhouse.com/2010/04/21/stephen-jacksons-swagger-loyalty-give-bobcats-hope/) are decent reads as well.

[ajbry]

As someone reading Gladwell right now, there's no way any "normal" athlete could read that, much less comprehend. I think our team, while not as talented as the other playoff teams, is one of, if not the, smartest team. GW was an elite student in HS, Jack is a "high-level" reader, Boris is super smart, Stevie is above-average, and from everything I've seen so is Hughes.

BBIQ > Talent at the NBA level.

It doesn't surprise me that Gerald was an excellent student. Everything about GW indicates that he is one of the few legitimate role models in sports today. He's just a real good dude, it seems.