Frank C

[kshoe]

that the biggest myth going in recruiting is that a player should go to a "big-time" program to get more exposure for the NBA. Considering the majority of first rounders now play in Europe or in highschool that arguement hold very little water. If you can play, scouts will find you. Last year AJ and Paulding were on t.v. as much as any team in the country except Duke. Its quite possible that all that exposure actually hurt them as NBA scouts got long looks both at their abilities but also their weaknesses. The code word these days in the NBA is "potential" and its quite possible that you can be overexposed and lose the "potential label".

[tseugnekillib]

Romar didn't hire Soderberg just to have SLU covered in case he decided to go to Washington. Romar hired Soderberg to be his defensive aide replacing Randy Bennett who got the head job at St. Mary's of California. In addition, Romar offered Soderberg a job at Washington if he didn't get any of the open Midwest jobs (SLU, GreenBay, Evansville, etc.).

[Tonka]

why don't we all get together and write poetry instead of talking about basketball. Therefore, we could express ourselves artfully and maybe after have a big group hug! Oh wait, maybe we could rent a room put our chairs in a circle and have a big intervention. It would force us all to look in the mirror and see ourselves for who we are. At the end, we could all cry on each other's shoulders and get it all out. GIVE ME A BREAK!!!!

Ever so often I check the sensitivities of this board and it never ceases to amaze me. You would think we were discussing our little girl's performances at dance recitals and we were the protecting our innocent little angels.

Thicks, thank you! We started off on a rough road, but your intuition let you see otherwise. If people know don’t know when I am serious or not, I could really care less though. I vent on this board and share my passion as much as anyone else, although it’s usually clear as all heck when I am being serious. Not everybody can pick up on that. You would have thought my initial shot at Slufanskip would have set the tone for the post, but again not everybody can pick up on that.

Someone posted something about anonymity on this board and that’s similar to a post I had way back when. But, is there such a think as anonymity on this board anymore? Many of us bought t-shirts and many of us plastered our username on the backs of those and many of us where that t-shirt all over the place. Most of us posted where our seats are at and many of us get together and chat at the games.

Brehms, not sure why so many people walk on eggshells around you, but that seems to be the case. Maybe it’s because you’re a sibling of Reg’s. Who knows? Anyway, I think you should reread my post. Not sure I ever referred to thugs at all. Secondly, I think I said I don’t know the validity of it. I also said I “heard†he was lazy. If you go back to last year, you can read who wrote that and address them personally, as it was said. Last thing I talked about was commitments. I do believe commitments are important, especially ones that are as big as one that TL made. A lot of time, money, and resources were given to him and he made a commitment. I believe he should honor that assuming he is healthy and no other life changing event dictates otherwise. If you think that is wrong that I think that, then we’ll just have to disagree. I also stand by something else I said. If what I “heard†about Tommy being lazy is true, and we know he has some challenges academically, and he has a hard time keeping large commitments – then I do say good riddance to him and anybody else who may have those same things. We’ve seen the frustrations from guys like Tatum in regards to keeping them eligible. We’ve lived the frustrations of not seeing full potential by guys that are lazy, like we’ve heard that JJ was in the beginning. So, if you couple that with the commitment, I stand by my comment about good riddance. If none of it is true about TL, then it’s no skin off his back. Think about it.

I’d saying any of my comments I post to anybody and anybody’s face. If you search on all my posts, I am very fair. Passionate, but fair. I say things in jest and would say those things in jest to any of the people I said them about. If they are too sensitive to handle them, I will then know in the future and refrain.

[tseugnekillib]

I totally agree with Kshoe re the exposure bs being claimed by some of the larger schools and street agents.

In the recently competed 2004 draft (two rounds/59 players), eight high schools were taken, 16 foreign players, and five players from the likes of Western Carolina, NC Central, Morehead State, Cal State-Fullerton and some remote, corn-field hidden, southern Illinois juco. Big time TV exposure required my butt!!

[3star_recruit]

You are a brave man. If you said some of the stuff in Tommie's presence that you say on the board, I'm sure the young man would slug you. :-)

[Tonka]

Not sure what you are referring to, because what I say fails in comparison to what so many say, so often. But, like I said, I stand by what I said and I don't see anything bad directed at TL. If he's a good guy, he would agree with me in my assessment if we were talking about another individual.

[slufanskip]

Brehms ... I didn't know for sure if you were responding to me I should have checked who you were replying to. Please don't stop giving us your opinion good or bad ... thats what makes the board interesting. Yes we are like family. Most of us have become friends and have gotten together to watch the Bills on the road or sit together at all-star games and the like. I asked you a while back if you got to St. Louis for the games ... because I wanted to have the chance to say Hi in person ... because we are all a family, agreements and disagreements.

In our family is Tonka ... if you read most of his posts ...you would know to take him tongue in cheek ... he uses sarcasm to get his point across a lot. He sits behind me at the games and I would consider him a friend. I like his posts and the board wouldn't be the same without the different personalities.

I agree with alot of his opinions ... and if I read betwwen the lines it seems you do also ... you just state it differently, maybe more compassionately ... because you have inside info.

Again... please keep up your posts ... agree or disagree

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[kwyjibo]

I do not think this board speaks as a unified voice and I do not like it when people write as if it did.

I do not think people should make blanket statements either. I do not think I was.

But I should not have thrown in the the remark about the Soderberg bashing either. It is past. I apologize.

[slufanskip]

Well I think I can speak for the entire board and I forgive you ... so therefore so does everyone else.

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[brehms13]

I hope no one walks on egg shells for me because I'm Reg's sister, If that's the case, then that's on them, I don't know u.......just like u don't know ME......I vent just like u.....I saw it as polite criticism aimed at intentionally throwing slurs about this kid, and I don't care who was the intended target.....what u should know is u're not the only poster on the board, u do have new comers, out of towners or whatever u liked to call someone like myself (?)so if u don't clarify your statements I'll take them as their written. Secondly, I did go back and state that Nark mentioned the thugs u mentioned the committment and that his A$$ (Tommie) as u put it, should stay gone (paraphrasing of course). I still didn't think that was called for. So I spoke on it, as I will continue to do on the board, off the board, at a game, or in a bar with you all. It doesn't matter. Again you assume because those that know u, knew u were just being sarcastic that all of us would, which is bull if that was the case, there wouldn't be a thread asking you to watch your mouth. I didn't know if u were joking or not and I still don't know that u were. But u can care less what I know, so it's all good, u speak your peace, I'll speak mine. I know how to effectively debate without be totally disrespectful, can't guarantee, but I try anyway. I know how disagree without being degrading, that's for darn sure. But please, for future reference....anyone on this board who walks on eggshells because i'm Reg's sister, please just stop it, please!! after all Tonka knows u guys.......I don't, I'm just the group hug type who can't figure things out and far be it from me to disagree with anything that's meant to be sarcastic written by Tonka. My bad. (FYI....this is a sarcastic statement) I'm really having a good day to day.....so I'm full of expressions........

[billiken_roy]

not to excuse or rationalize why anyone said or wrote what they did, but you have to admit it was quite the shock. as some analogized, it was like coming home and finding your spouse in the arms of another person. quite the shock. especially considering the strong article just a few days before where tommie restated his committment to come to slu. to expect everyone to calmly accept that is too much to ask. most of us here are the most rabid billiken fans in the world. we live, bleed and die billiken blue. myself, i readily admit that after my family and my career, care about nothing as much as the billikens. passion makes people say and do weird stuff.

[Billiken Rich]

Well said Roy. My thoughts exactly.

[brehms13]

No Roy, i fully understand what u're saying....I wasn't so shocked, because I've seen it done plenty of times. I got that part of it, but there were only a few who tried to trash Tommie's character because of it. He said in article in STLToday that he was going on what the coach said about them putting more people in the NBA and got caught up. But some on the board just started harping on his friendship with thugs, or his committment level. I mean I grew up in the hood, I was raised there, there were no college professors who lived next door to me, no judges, police officers, no rich or middleclass, we had working people in my block. But down the street we had crack houses, drug dealers, we went to school with them, we walked pass them everyday, we grew up with them, we couldn't help it that was our environment at the time.......U had better learn to lean on them, because they were a part of our environment, sure our family taught us to that the life they lived wasn't the one we were gonna live but, that they were people just like we are, and it could be one of us on that corner. It could've been my parents hooked on drugs or vice versa......so we depended on those people our environment. Ironically not one of them ever approached us about selling or using drugs. They knew what we were about and they were rooting for us just like our family. So for those comments to be made about Tommie, just because he may have been pondering another school, was totally uncalled for. That's what everyone is missing, it's not the fact at the board being upset at his decision making it's the pot shots that were taken at his culture, as if to say "it figures" coming from this or that....I wanted u all to know that I come from the same things and that those comments weren't appreciated. U see I didn't respond to a lot of other comments because they weren't offensive. Thicks and Tonka said it was sarcasim, but I didn't find it funny, I found it offensive. I'm a realist, once they said Liddell had to go to prep school because of his grades, I accepted the fact that it was a 50/50 chance of him coming back to SLU. That was based on my experience with kids in similar situations, not because SLU isn't a good enough school.

[brehms13]

Exactly......I wasn't upset at all, yesterday was a very good day for me, being that I was at work, I welcomed the responses. I should let u all know, that I'm always told I'm the motherly type, I'm hard with my comments, but I try to protect everybody. I guess like Tonka's sarcasm, just accept me for me, I'll accept Tonka and Nark for who they are, we will go back and forth on issues, which is great, and we'll still be cool. If I step out of line sometimes, I know u guys will definitely tell me, so if something was offensive, I felt I could tell u guys. That's all....OH, I am emotional too.....not like crying and group hugs though. I don't know man, trust me, I love this board.......I rely on you all to give me inside info about the team etc......When I couldn't get to games personally, on television or radio, I came straight here. I would want to know if maybe i've crossed the line with someone and have offended them...so I wanted to say to those individuals, hey okay guys(But as u know by now, I can never just say 4 or 5 words) , let's stop with the pot shots, because I really hope people see more than that with Reg, even if he makes a baaaaaddddddd decision, that SLU family won't just turn on him and start bringing up his friendships with "thugs" etc. My famous words..." its all good", my grandfather always told me I talked too much, shoot Reg will tell u that, he said u gonna have people bringing signs to the game, booing me...hahahaha, of course we were just joking......

But admit, this is the most excitement we've had on the board in weeks, it's been well worth the wait.

[Quality Is Job 1]

I agree with you. While I recognize Tonka's penchant for satire, I don't necessarily endorse his methods. But I think it's best for me to stay out of debates involving culture, as my takes have tended to lead to hostility. Therefore I didn't do any chastising. Still, I considered deleting the posts, in case they would be read by and affect Tommie and his decision, but that sort of thing happens all the time on TigerBoard and I hate that, so I refrained.

Really, it should all be water under the bridge now.

[Tonka]

Brehms - when you're at a game, you can come over and sit by Slufanskip and I. You'll see he's the real menace in the Billiken community. Actually, he's a good guy. He likes soccer more than I care for, but his loud voice at the basketball games makes up for it. He persuades the refs unlike any other.

To anybody who's been watching any summer hoops. I need to get my fix, so if anybody's going to be attending anything - let me know, I'd like to join you. Not sure where that would be, but hopefully there's something.

[billiken_roy]

i might be going to the swic high school girls summer tourney this weekend. anyone want to place a wager on whether jill will be in attendance as well? or is this a dead period? i dont know.

as to skip yelling at the billiken games, i sit almost directly diagonally from skip at the savvis. i swear i can hear him over the roar.

[slufanskip]

This year I plan on turning it up a notch ... got to get the vocals primed for the new building.

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