Judging by the number of comments attached to each post, I can infer that the athlete blogs at Yardbarker are immensely popular.
While authentic, the updates tend to be about mundane day-to-day events in the careers of the sports stars. If you're a fan and want to get the scoop from the athlete himself, that's great, but I tend to want more.
However, the chronicles of Washington Wizards center Brendan Haywood have impressed me.
Haywood may be no Shakespeare, but the guy has a knack for getting his point across. In his YB blog, Haywood tackles thorny issues such as athlete infidelity, NBA age limits and the justice system (Donte Stallworth vs. Michael Vick), making his case for why Vick should be allowed to play in the NFL again.
Moreover, the 7-footer calls out LeBron James for not shaking hands after being eliminated by the Orlando Magic, Arizona State University for not rewarding Barack Obama with an honorary degree and bad fan behavior.
It's obvious that Brendan Haywood is an intelligent, well-mannered guy who loves to blog and get discussions started. He happens to be an NBA player, but I hope he doesn't stop writing. He's not only a good read, but the owner of a bright post-NBA future as well.
Rod Benson and Coleman Collins may not have made the NBA (at least not yet) but they are professional basketball players who play in the D-League. And they probably write better than you, too : They double as professional scribes.
Benson, of Ball Don't Lie fame, reminds me of The Fresh Prince (of Bel-Air) : goofy, charming and lovable all at once. Obviously, his subject matter on BDL is limited mostly to basketball, but his infinitely fun-loving nature adds depth and texture to his writing.
To really get a sense of what makes me refer to Benson as the 21st century Fresh Prince of Web 2.0 (i.e. when he's not hooping it up), you're going to have to check out his personal blog Too Much Rod Benson and the Boom Tho Movement.
Assuming he keeps at it, Rod Benson may just become a poor man's Will Smith, who started with his rapping career as The Fresh Prince to build a one-man multimedia empire in music, film and television.
"The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (Theme)" by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
If Rod Benson is a poor man's Fresh Prince, then Coleman Collins is a cult version of Talib Kweli, providng sharp, no-nonsense commentary on politics, society, race and sports as a guest blogger on TrueHoop.
Coleman Collins is a worldly man, and while he doesn't have the light-hearted humor of Benson or pure excitement of Brendan Haywood, his dry, candid insight on the human condition leaves me thinking days on end about the moral of the story.
So while Benson and Collins don't have the luxury or security that having millions of dollars in their bank accounts would provide, a la Haywood, through their basketball and literary careers, they inspire the average Joe to dream. That utilizing your talents in a smart, efficient way will get you through life just fine.
Paul Shirley represents part of the future of media. By receiving notoriety for blogging about his time with the Phoenix Suns, Shirley was able to turn what was a career as a 12th man into a career as a multimedia star. He may have hardly got off the bench when he played on the Suns, but he was an NBA player nevertheless. The team he currently plays for is Unicaja Malaga, one of the elite teams of the Spanish ACB, the best league in the world after the Association.
The Tallest Cheerleader in NBA History
But ultimately, Shirley gives aspiring multimedia stars hope due to his rise from modest baller to media personality. Shirley wasn't even a star in college. He went to Iowa State on an academic scholarship and did the dirty work while teammates Marcus Fizer and Jamaal Tinsley got all the accolades. He played in the NCAA Tournament and graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering.
The 6-10 big man couldn't stick in the NBA, so he bounced around the minors and Europe, taking his lumps in stride and turning them into pay and prominence. He now has a book and his own section on ESPN's The Life, writing about music.
Summing up what Paul Shirley is, he's an author, a sportswriter, a music critic and a pro baller, doing cool things that he loves doing and still be himself - a nerd.
So all you geeks and techies, don't try to be something you're not - like gladiators. With the way internet technology and social networking is evolving, if you've got a knack for writing and navigating your way around the web, blogging may just be your thing. Be proud of whom you are.
If being a nerd is good enough for professional basketball players like Brendan Haywood, Rod Benson, Coleman Collins and Paul Shirley, then it's certainly good enough for you.
0 comments:
Post a Comment