It's laughable the way Benny Phillips defends Chris Paul's actions from the WFU vs. NCSU game. As we all know, Paul actually punched another player in the groin.
Officials didn't see anything as is usually the case with Paul's antics. Had this been the first episode I'd give him a free pass. But Chris Paul has done this all season long. Examples:
1. He rakes his shoe across Duke's Sean Dockery's face while Dockery is laying on the floor.
2. Shoves the ball in Duke's Lee Melchionni's face after a foul is called.
3. Elbows NCSU's Hodge in the back as they fall out of bounds in their first game.
4. Elbowed Duke's Daniel Ewing in the face.
5. Hit UVA's Sean Singletary in the face after a foul.
This doesn't include the numerous antics while going for loose balls. This guy throws more elbows than a running back.
Chris Paul has been doing this all year, and there is rarely a reporter that calls him out for this nonsense. If this were Rashad McCants, Benny Phillips and the rest of his brethren would be screaming from the rafters on how he should be benched for the rest of the season. You see, in "sports reporter land," it's much worse to give an "X" sign with your arms or a "throat slash" than it is to punch somebody in the groin in a sporting event!
Chris Paul is an unbelievable basketball player, and he well may be a great kid. I have nothing to judge him on but his behavior on the court. But his lack of sportsmanship and respect for other players is disgusting and sad. It takes away from his talents as a player.
Geoffrey F. Green 15 March 2005 18:36:17 [ permanent link ]
In article <slrnd3dq9g.jg9.djbSPAMSUCKS@localhost.localdomain>, Donnie Barnes <djbSPAMSUCKS@donniebarnes.com> wrote:
I'd go so far as to say if McCants had done> what Downey did, we'd *still* be talking about it.
Well, he gave his mom cancer just so he could get some sympathy from the press and opposing fans (and take some time off from playing hoops), and no one's talking about that.
Larry R Harrison Jr 15 March 2005 20:44:17 [ permanent link ]
Exactly right. I don't know if it's the way Wake Forest players seem to get beneficial calls (I know, you're tired of hearing about it) or the way Rashad McCants has become a target almost identical in the way Rasheed Wallace was in 1995.
Everytime Rashad McCants gets just the wee-smallest facial expression that isn't full of Marry Poppins optimism, the cameras zoom in one him and the commentators go all crazy about "Rashad isn't going to win any games for Carolina sulking that way" or "Rashad really needs to get his attitude in check, Carolina depends on him too much." Or Rashad is making a small gesture to a friend of his in the stand "what is Rashad trying to instigate now? What kind of taunting is that?"
Oh--but when we punch someone in the groin, and stomp on other players--why "he's a good kid, that's totally out of character for him. What a talented point guard he is."
