So I’ll be the first to admit that one of the only consolations for having to miss Game One came from being able to see our very own David “Fluffy” West get up in Dirk Nowitzki’s face in the 4th quarter. And then watch the replay and be like, “He actually tapped him on the face. Wow. Wow. D WEST MOTHAFUCKAAAAS!!!!”
(If you missed it because you were at the game, and you probably were like, “Double technicals what? Eh, whatever” and/or were high on life during that part of the 4th quarter, shall we say… here it is at the bottom of the post, plus Bonus! Idiotic Commentary.)
Seriously? Would anyone have really noticed if Sir Chuck and Co. hadn’t gotten up to their old tricks during halftime coverage yesterday, talking about how they’re “from the 80’s, man” and they would have punched him or sent a thug after him? mW just watched the clip and noted that the way this whole thing has been blown out of proportion seems more homophobic than anything else. “OH MY GOD. YOU CANNOT LET ANOTHER MAN TOUCH YOUR FACE! THE WORLD WILL END!”
Come on. I’ve seen David West in angry-mode and that wasn’t it. He was pretty calm, Dirk was pretty calm. Obviously some explicit language was tossed around, or there wouldn’t have been double technicals called. But he did NOT bitchslap, pimpslap, or any other sort of slap him. Yes, it’s a bit invasive to get all up in someone’s space and touch them like that, and it was a ballsy move on DX’s part, but how come no one brings up the fact that he’s obviously reacting to getting elbowed and telling Dirk to watch it? I mean, if you watch the whole play you can see him wiping the blood off his lip, plus the cut is clearly visible at the press conference. It’s not like West was like, “Oh, let’s go push around Dirk because he’s soft.” It was reactionary.
And both of them did the smart thing by not reacting further. Hello. They’re the #1 and #2 go-to guys for their respective teams, and it’s only Game 1. What do you think they’re going to do? Yet every time I turn around, there is another thing about this on the internet. “Dirk is soft! The Mavs should trade everyone and start over!” And, infuriatingly, every other one of them is like, “Who is David West anyway? Punk.” (I’m not going to bother to illuminate them at this time, because chances are if you’re here, you already know the beastliness that is David West.)
And finally, True Hoop is like, “Oh please.”
And Nowitzki did finish with 31 and 10. It’s not like he was emasculated by the event.
Let’s be honest: if the Mavericks had won that game, nobody would have said anything. Instead, they lost, and there is pressure on all involved to explain why the Mavericks lost. It has to be somebody’s fault. You could make a strong case out of the team’s habitual inability to slow supernova guards like Chris Paul. You could point to how well Jannero Pargo draped himself all over Jason Terry. You could also wonder when, exactly, Josh Howard will be ready to play his game again.
None of that is as sexy as signing up the most obvious Maverick for the most obvious criticism.
Entries (RSS)
April 21st, 2008 at 7:21 pm
I’m with ticktock 100% here. The media likes to MAKE stories, not report them. There’s nothing here. And despite all their protestations, if DX and Dirk had gotten in a fight and gotten tossed, they would have also both been suspended. And then, instead of talking tough about the 80s, like they’re hockey players or pre-Auburn Hills, they would be ripping both players for losing their cool.
More than that, going forward, if anyone thinks all this bluster has escaped David Stern’s notice they’re crazy. I’d bet my season tickets that the big man has already instructed his refs to call a tight game on Tuesday and allow no nonsense. With the reputation of the league cleaner than ever, Stern won’t want any fighting to mar that image.
So if they were smart, both coaches would remind their players of this too. Anyone notice the shoving match in the first Cavs-Wizards game? The assistant coaches immediately jumped up and made sure no one left the bench (a foul that earns an automatic suspension). The Bees just need to get back to playing tough D with explosive O, and not get caught up in all the…um…hype.
April 22nd, 2008 at 12:28 am
Why is D West (rarely) called “Fluffy”? I know the negative-ass dude on hornets247, who has a nice blog but probably wishes they would’ve gone 18-64, says that; but where does it come from?
April 22nd, 2008 at 5:51 am
“Fluffy” is a joke, because apparently someone calling the game once said David West’s jump shot was “as soft as a fluffy bunny” or something like that.
April 22nd, 2008 at 10:34 am
Personally, I abstain from the “fluffy” nickname. I look at it like this, if David read a post of mine that said that would he like it or be ticked? I think he might tap my face.
April 22nd, 2008 at 10:57 am
Didn’t Ron ask him at All Star Weekend and he was like, “Whoa, do NOT call me Fluffy”?
Yep, here it is
What? The face tap was a harmless fluffy face tap.
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:34 pm
Scavenging through 247, I think ‘Fluffy’ is in regards to the chin stubble or whatever DX has on his chin.
Whatever allows DX to play like DX, Sampson.
April 25th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
I don’t know, I’ve seen west when he was pissed and he didn’t look fluffy at all. He’s kind of a babyface but when he’s mad it’s funny how the whole team will run up to calm him down. Anyway I just think it’s kinda funny with west tapping dirk on the face, good way to show him that he’s not intimidated by last years MVP.