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Chris Bosh demands respect from Skip Bayless and talks about Heat loss in NBA Finals: Fan reaction
Chris Bosh demands respect from Skip Bayless and talks about Heat loss in NBA Finals: Fan reaction
The [Miami]e|heat Heat 's Chris Bosh (notes) joined ESPN's First Take to confront the Heat's harshest critic, Skip Bayless. Bosh addressed Heat topics ranging from LeBron to why the Heat lost the NBA Finals.
But, Bosh started off by asking Bayless for respect.
R.E.S.P.E.C.T.
Skip Bayless began calling Chris Bosh "Bosh Spice" on national television after a game against the [New Orleans]e|hornets Hornets where Bosh collected only one rebound in 34 minutes.
For the rest of the regular season, Bayless attacked Bosh with this pettiness after every lackluster performance.
Bosh admitted that that some of his early rebounding figures were unacceptable and that they were part of the adjustment process of joining the [Miami]e|heat Heat. Each night, he said, you get the opposing team's best effort, which is completely different from playing for the [Toronto]e|raptors Raptors .
In spite of accepting responsibility, Bosh said that he was offended by the name calling, specifically because it involves a bastardization of his family name.
A name his parents and grandparents are proud of.
Skip's retort was to explain that the name was simply a reflection of Bosh's soft, passive play and that Bayless is called nastier things on Twitter, daily.
Jemele Hill, dubbed the neutral observer, contributed by saying that calling CB1, "Bosh Spice," which is a play on words based on the Spice Girls, implicitly questions a man's masculinity and has no place in a sports dialogue.
Hill is right, but how about getting rid personal attacks in all together?
Skip Bayless: Actor or Bully?
Did Skip Bayless not take Logic or Intro to Philosophy in college?
Does he not know that ad hominem attacks are fallacious and disconnected from civilized debate?
I could understand it if it were a joke or hyperbole, but he means these things.
Once upon a time, I thought Skip Bayless was an actor. Unlike other analysts who seem pretty sincere, I thought the whole Skip personality was a shtick.
Gimmick journalism.
Then, a few months ago, ESPN's Stuart Scott told me via Twitter that although he didn't have a close relationship with Bayless, he respected the man because Bayless believes what he says.
Well, if Skip Bayless is actually honest about what he says, then you know what that makes him?
Hothead sports dad.
Metaphorically, he's that dad on the sideline bullying his kid after each mistake and calling him a failure.
But the victims of his abuse are almost exclusively minority millionaires, so no one steps in.
Instead, he gets followed by hundreds of thousands of people, 80 percent of whom loathe and verbally defile him, but still add to his overall celebrity and bottom line.
In that sense, Skip Bayless is a success.
The [Miami]e|heat Heat v. Showtime Lakers
After Skip and Bosh were done clearing the air, the conversation moved on to football for a while and then to the [Miami]e|heat Heat.
The panel asked Bosh who he thought would win a 3 on 3 between the Heat's Big Three and the Showtime Lakers' Kareem, Magic and James Worthy.
CB1 said he thought it'd be a close game, but somewhat dodged the question, intelligently.
Can you imagine the headlines today if Bosh said the Heatles would've crushed Showtime?
"Another symptom of the [Miami]e|heat 's hubris unveiled," on the ESPN sports ticker.
Skip responded by declaring that the Heat would lose 21 to 8, even if the game weren't make-it take-it.
Again, absolutely ridiculous.
There's no doubt that the Heat would struggle with the old school Lakers' size, but Showtime would have to deal with the Heat's athleticism.
Bayless is right that Bosh would be helpless against the 7'4'' Kareem and his unstoppable skyhook, but he's ignoring how hopeless Worthy and Magic would be against a LeBron or D-Wade drive.
Neither Magic nor Big Game James was a particularly good defensive player nor as fast as either Flash or the King.
Make-it take-it and the game could be a rout either way; losers' outs and I'm with Bosh; it's a close one.
Why the [Miami]e|heat Heat lost the NBA Finals
Chris Bosh didn't put all of the responsibility on LeBron James' (notes) shoulders, but I believe he implied that something was wrong with LeBron during the Finals.
When asked what he would change if he could play the Finals over again, Bosh focused on demanding more of other players. He said that the [Miami]e|heat Heat players weren't aggressive enough at holding each other accountable.
He also spoke about the importance of "mental stability."
Now, Bosh is every diplomatic in that he always takes personal responsibility, but he played admirably in the Finals. He even hit a game winner in Game 3, even though his eye had been practically gouged out.
Personally, I think all of this "mental stability" talk speaks directly to LeBron James and is a tacit admission by players and the organization that something was plaguing him psychologically during those Finals.
Bosh's insistence on maintaining mental stability is consistent with Spoelstra's rhetoric in the last few games of the championship round.
If you'll notice, throughout the year and playoffs, Spoelstra's mantras were always trust, effort and [Miami]e|heat Heat defense.
Why did the focus all of the sudden become the importance of "mental stability?"
Best Player in the NBA
The show closed with two of sports media's hottest topics:
Who is the best player in the NBA? And who is the [Miami]e|heat Heat's closer?
Concerning the best in the NBA, Bosh shockingly stated it was Dirk Nowitzki (notes) .
This response is understandable because Dirk may be the most versatile offensive player in NBA history and Bosh had the herculean task of covering him for stretches of the Finals, but I think the answer was a little knee-jerk and a little myopic.
Dirk is arguably the best offensive player in the league, but there are two players on the [Miami]e|heat Heat alone who are better basketball players than Dirk Nowitzki.
Dwyane Wade (notes) and LeBron James.
The keyword here? Defense.
Dirk plays practically none, and both LBJ and D-Wade are elite defenders.
Their defensive ability is more than enough compensation for the efficiency discrepancy on offense between the Heatles and Dirk.
The Closer Situation
Finally, for anyone who didn't watch the NBA Finals, Bosh finally answered the question that the media has been analyzing exhaustively for nearly a year.
Dwyane Wade is the [Miami]e|heat Heat's closer.
Unless LeBron is having games like he did against the [Boston]e|celtics Celtics or the [Chicago]e|bulls Bulls , Wade will have the ball in his hands in the last few minutes.
Personally, I'm glad that Bosh finally said it because I firmly believe that uncertainty about that role (along with bad defense), cost the [Miami]e|heat Heat Game 2 and perhaps their first NBA championship.
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