Bandwagon Jumpin’; Voodoo Hexes
Posted by Little SK, May 7, 2008 - 11:07 am
Before the Mavs current run of postseason appearances, I made it an annual tradition to pick a playoff team to support. I would shamelessly leap onto their bandwagon in April, and just as shamelessly jump off in June. Scoff if you will, but it served a dual purpose. 1) It kept me distracted from the Mavs suckitude, and 2) it gave me a personal (however temporary) stake in the playoffs, making the games infinitely more enjoyable to watch. Also, as a bandwagon jumper, I could avoid the inevitable let down when the team I chose lost (which happened very frequently. And by frequently I mean all the time).
Past bandwagon teams include the Payton/Kemp era Sonics and the AI Sixers. My criteria was simple. The team had to be some sort of underdog (I know the Sonics were not always the “underdog” in the West, but it was the ’90s, every team that didn’t have Michael Jordan was an underdog), and there had to be a slightly misunderstood, exciting, mold-breaking, other-wordly athletic player anchoring the squad. Hence Shawn Kemp and Allen Iverson.
This year, I’m reviving the tradition and my pick (drum roll please…) is Chris “The Real MVP” Paul and the 2008 New Orleans Hornets! (Can they switch names with the Jazz already?)
*Screeching sound as the Hornets bandwagon comes to a sudden halt*
I know you’re probably filled with questions, but just hear me out (and save your not-so-righteous indignation for later). I’ll break my decision down with a quick True or False test.
True or False: Chris Paul’s ridiculous performance is the main reason for your bandwagon leap.
TRUE: I tried to stagger you with his numbers for the regular season, but if that didn’t work, take a look at his numbers from the series-clinching fifth game against the Mavs.
44 minutes played, 10-19 from the field and 2-4 from the free throw line for 24 points, 11 rebounds (he’s barely six feet tall), 2 steals, 15 assists and zero turnovers.
REEEEEEWIND!
srevonrut orez dna stsissa 51, slaets 2…
…2 steals, 15 assists and ZERO TURNOVERS!
In other words, aside from the 9 missed shots and two missed free throws, in 44 minutes HE DIDN’T MAKE A MISTAKE. Not once. His passes never missed the mark, he never lost his dribble, he never traveled…nothing. You mean to tell me you don’t want to see this guy play for as long as possible?
True or False: Everyone should root for New Orleans.
TRUE: This is a city that, three years after Hurricane Katrina, is still taking baby steps towards recovery. If the Saints run two years ago galvanized the nation behind the Big Easy, then Paul and the Hornets are making sure you don’t forget how much work still needs to be done. CP3, through his basketball brilliance and sheer force of will, isn’t just pulling the Hornets from the lottery to the top of the conference, he’s pulling an entire city up with him. The Hornets continued success means that New Orleans stays in the spotlight, and I’m all for that.
Side note: There’s all this talk about how Kevin Garnett rejuvenated the Celtic basketball tradition; how he changed the attitudes of everyone in the organization. But what’s harder, rekindling a fire that’s been there for 40 years, or creating a brand new movement basically from scratch? Celtics fans may bemoan the last few years, but they have the strongest winning tradition in the NBA (the same can be said for Kobe and the Lakers). The people of New Orleans had nothing (literally) and now they have a team that, after running over the 2006 Western Conference champs, is on it’s way to completely dismantling the four-time NBA champion Spurs. KG may have helped Rajon Rondo believe in himself, but CP3 has helped give hope and excitement to a team and to a community that had very little of it. That’s why he should’ve won the MVP.
True or False: Aren’t you a little late to the party? Isn’t the Hornets bandwagon already pretty full?
FALSE: And this is the worst part of the confession. When Dirk went down late in the season, and it looked like the Mavs might miss the playoffs, I had already started the process of picking my bandwagon team. The choice was pretty clear as I had been following Paul’s historic season since the All-Star break. I just never thought that the Mavs would ultimately be matched up against the Hornets. I know what you’re thinking, “You call yourself a fan?!? Did you pull a hamstring jumping on and off so many bandwagons? What’s next, a post about how you were secretly in love with Eli Manning?” I probably deserve some ridicule, but in my defense, the Mavs looked pretty cooked and I needed something to be excited about. Plus, if you couldn’t tell, I was pretty jacked when the Mavs started playing well, and pretty upset when they forgot to show up. Did my flirtation with New Orleans anger the basketball gods and cause them to put some sort of complicated Voodoo Hex on the Sad-vericks? Possibly. Or more possibly, the Mavs played like poo and deserved to lose. I vote for the latter.
So yes Mavs fans, I’m throwing my lot in with the team that just vanquished us, but look at it this way. If my previous playoff bandwagon teams are any indication, my support virtually guarantees the Hornets won’t go all the way.
I am the Voodoo Hex.
Photo credit: Victor Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images
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Little SK, I am all for jumping the bandwagon on Chris Paul’s Hornets. I’ll even defend Kobe and say that the MVP was truly up for grabs this year among him, KG and CP3. However, most VALUABLE player on a team has to be CP3- leave him out of the team, and the Hornets collapse. Kobe was responsible for the West’s top seed, but he absolutely could not have done it without Gasol. But, I will dispute your bandwagon abilities- weren’t you a staunch member of the Mavs, the very ones that were thoroughly outplayed by the Hornets?? If that is indeed the case- a bandwagon jumper cannot be a turncoat!
Don’t mean to blow up your spot, R-Dawg, but I’m calling horseshit. You of all people have no ground to stand on when talking about jumping bandwagons.