by Kent Sterling
How is the possibility that this knee to Paul George’s head was purposeful so difficult to fathom?
The Dan Dakich Show doesn’t dole out a bunch of pre-approved media claptrap from 12p-3p on 1070 the Fan in Indianapolis. No one else is talking about whether the Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade knee to the back of Pacers forward Paul George’s skull was inadvertent or intentional. Dan is, and he’s right to.
Too many laymen watch elite athletes through their own experiences and feel the very probable is impossible. A knee to the brain as a man dives across another moving athlete is almost impossible for weekend warriors to imagine executing, but to a player like Wade it’s as easy as making a layup.
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At least it looked like both players were diving at the time, but a closer look (see pic above) shows that Wade dove following the impact. He was in full control of both legs at the time of the kick.
Remember the LeBron James elbow that squeezed through Roy Hibbert’s arms during a regular season Pacers vs. Heat game in March is another great example of a physical act that showed otherworldly dexterity that 99.999% of regular guys don’t possess, and so James got a virtual pass.
Another quality that most normal people don’t have, or if they do they sure don’t utilize it in ordinary life, is a willingness to do whatever it takes to win. And I mean whatever.
Athleticism and an all powerful craving for success are two of the chief differences between professionals and amateurs in sports and business, and as Dan spoke about his belief that Wade did what he did to George late in the game Tuesday night, I thought about those differences. Dan has been there, willing to go to lengths most would shrink from to emerge victorious.
You want to know why Dan was able to stop Michael Jordan in Indiana’s 1984 NCAA Tournament win over North Carolina? It’s the same reason Bob Knight assigned Dan to defend Jordan – because extreme will can overcome an athletic deficit.
With a chance to diminish an opponent without penalty, champions will always take their shot, and that is exactly what Wade did.
This isn’t a criticism of Wade anymore than Dan’s revelation about his act being purposeful was. Wade had an opening to adjust the competitive balance in the Eastern Conference Finals, and he took it.
Just because the decision was made very, very quickly – almost instantaneously – Wade’s intent shouldn’t be dismissed, nor should his innocence be granted.
Now, there is no way Wade will ever publicly own up to his attempt to bring pain to George and weaken the Pacers ability to compete, but for anyone to infer blind luck as the reason his knee solidly struck the cranium of the Pacers best player is ridiculous – or he/she has never dug deep into the soul where the bad stuff lies.
For champions, winning is the equivalent of self-preservation. How hard would you fight if losing equaled death? That’s the regular state for men like Michael Jordan, Isiah Thomas, and Dwyane Wade. The difference between dirty and clean is meaningless to them compared to the difference between winning and losing.
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One of the wonderful aspects of competing is experiencing first hand the speed with which physical decisions can be made and executed. Time slows, a conscious decision can be made, and the perfect physical motion can be executed in the blink of an eye. Whether it’s driving a 2-2 slide piece the other way for a game-winning oppo-taco or choosing to allow a knee to dangle in exactly the right spot to connect with an opposing player’s head, it’s all sports.
The Pacers know damn well that the knee to the head (if not the resulting injury) was intentional, and the Pacers would do exactly the same thing to Wade or James if given the opportunity in a moment where the referee’s judgment and chance for a proportionate consequence would be briefly suspended.
Anyone who thinks otherwise is naive.
(The Dan Dakich Show airs every weekday from 12p-3p ET on 1070 the Fan and streams on 1070thefan.com. As a source for unique perspective, it is in a class by itself.)
Agree, these guys are superior athletes. I have played a lot of basketball against guys with more talent than me and much, much less than any pro, and I was amazed at how they could hurt me by contorting their body at the right moment. This was easy pickings for Wade.
To believe that Wade did that on purpose, you’d have to be retarded. I don’t mean that in the figurative, derogatory sense. Rather, I mean it literally. You’d have to have an IQ so low as to be classified medically as “retarded” in order to believe that it was a deliberate act.
I, quite frankly, think its nice that people with mental disabilities are able to lead productive lives and find employment in our workforce. I’m not sure, though, that sports commentator is the best position for someone with such a disability, as this circumstance demonstrates.
I absolutely believe that Wade intentionally kneed George in the head, and I don’t understand why people are so quick to defend him given his history of cheap shots and dirty plays. I just hope he gets what he deserves.
Then you are retarded.
Mr. Dacity, your seat at the Algonquin Round Table is waiting! Is your middle name Pithy?
You need to find a new job. This sportswriting thing is clearly not working out for you.
give my regards to dorothy parker
“History of cheap shots.” What a joke. If you actually WATCHED the play (or the Rondo play from a few years back), you’d see that these were clear examples of two players trying to get a loose ball and one player getting injured BY ACCIDENT.
Meanwhile, Wade has been hacked, hammered and knocked to the floor countless times during his career.
You people are a joke.
“You people”? What the hell do you mean by “You people”? Into what sub-phylum are you lumping me?
This was not a clear example of anything but a guy putting his knee into a position to contact George’s head, and there is nothing wrong with that. Totally part of the game in the postseason.
Retarded sports fans who manufacture fake controversies.
How are you not getting this?
you need glasses
Yes he risked injuring his bad knee and by the way name 1 play where a pacer goes for a dunk or layup and gets tackled thanks for the answer
C.J. Watson was shoved sideways out of bounds in Game One while in the air. Happens all the time, and it’s supposed to. The playoffs are won by teams who play hard and tough.
Chalmers’ push was obviously intentional.
Wade’s collision was obviously not intentional.
Maybe you should take up needlepoint.
Ok, you’re a homer (and even worse than that, a perfect example of humans’ tendency to assume the worst of their opponents in life generally, for which you should be both ashamed and publicly shamed, considering you have a public platform).
But, I want you to stop and think this one through. Dwyane Wade, for whom one good shot to the knees could mean his career is OVER, decided (in a fraction of a second) to risk the REST OF HIS BASKETBALL LIFE in order to inflict a short-term injury on an opposing player. That’s your hypothesis?
When it’s put that away, don’t you feel embarrassed that this was your argument? Did they not teach critical thinking where you studied journalism?
For your next entry, I’ll be expecting a joint retraction/ apology from you and Dakich. Because I destroyed your position, albeit inductively. Seriously, you have no case anymore. You just got shredded by an anonymous Internet poster.
But, I’m not just an anonymous poster. I’m a reporter too. Kent’s editor, if you’re reading this, feel free to contact me and I’ll provide a resume. Because it seems like you’re in need of a serious staff upgrade and out of sheer sympathy for the quality of your reporting staff (if Kent is representative), I’d consider a change.
And Kent, if you are an editor or no longer have one, well, that reflects even worse on you, doesn’t it?
wade’s record on hurting people andcheap shots speaks for itself. a reporter. ha. that means you report what you are told by others. critical thinking; i think not.
any proseecutor would use the youtube material to establish a pattern of behavior.
do you think wade is smart enough to figure all this out? i say no and he should be dealt with. i wish karl malone was still around to open his head up.
You sure are a reporter. Read your piece blowing the lid off Hartford karaoke bars. Great work!
http://www.examiner.com/karaoke-bars-in-hartford/jeffrey-gebeau
Glad you chose to write about karaoke instead of pursuing a career as a terrible attorney where your case presentation would have caused unfavorable verdicts and increased sentences for your clients.
Next time you see someone try to sing “River Deep, Mountain High” tell him or her to leave that song alone. It belongs to Darlene Love or Tina Turner.
it was a bomb for phil spector; the end for him
But it exists today as one of the great – if not the greatest – pop song of all-time.
Done a little bit of work since then, Ken.
http://www.myrecordjournal.com/Search/?search=gebeau
I put my personal information online because you did, but let me tell you I will now be exploring the options of contacting your superiors (if you have any) AND legal options. I’ll know for sure once I talk to a lawyer, but don’t be surprised if this isn’t the last you hear about this.
By now you may have read the e-mail that I sent that to the site that outlines my position and the steps I intend to take more clearly. If you want to man up to your own shoddy reporting skills and post my last post and this one, which reveals that you googled me, found something I wrote in 2011 and concluded that was the extent of my portfolio, then leave this thread up.
On the other hand, if you’re going to “moderate” my comment (that exposes you again), but not post it, then take my personal information down immediately (I’ve already captured and saved this page should I need to present it at a later date).
Consider this the first request.
Can’t wait for your second request. The only moderation I do is for abusive language. Dudnderheadedness is not only allowed, but encouraged. Not sure what personal information I revealed.
There is nothing personal here that you didn’t enter yourself.
Please delete all posts containing my information. In fact, delete the entire thread.
I do not do that under any circumstance.
I saw the play. I thought Wade fouled George and caused him to go down in the first place. I’m not convinced that Wade intentionally kneed George but it is certainly not out of the realm of possibility. Athletes play games their whole lives with a style that can cause injury or not but there is nothing in your argument that “proves” anything. The fraction of a second, if anything, helps the other side of the argument, that it was more of a reaction than well thought moment.
Your response, however, IS rather laughable in that you posit your own bona fides, e.g., ‘I destroyed you’, ‘I shredded you’. What are you, a 4th grader with low self-esteem on the playground? Hardly the stuff of elite journalism. I wouldn’t hold your breath on getting a retraction or maybe that was just your ego needing to be assuaged.
Lewie – You are correct that there will neither be a retraction or comment to assuage our friend – the karaoke beat reporter from Hartford.
You know that in soccer dirty play can exist either within the rules, our outside a referee’s interpretation of a need for consequence. You know well at least one morally indifferent player who never received a red card but did everything possible to discourage offensive progression down a wing.
Winning requires the occasional departure from what is good and decent. Wade has always been a hard-nosed competitor, and I applaud him for that.
Winning requires the occasional departure from what is good and decent.
a better descirption of capitalism i have never read cept it’s more than occasional
so he is going to risk the same bulky knees that left him out of 1/3 by contacting it with a hard thing like pg head. SMH. Ok
“Bulky” knees are the best weapons.
Paul George just called. He thinks you’re a moron too.
Talked to Paul today. He seemed okay with me and very close to ready to play.
who knows what wade has buried in those knee pads
and pantyhose
It’s no way that’s intentional. Get A Life!
in the old days wade would have been dealt with; where are you now kevin mchale. this guy needs to be cold cocked
Wade is dirty. Has always been dirty. He has a history of lashing out when he gets embarrassed by other players, like when they steal the ball, discard him on a drive, bump into him forcefully while trying to make a play, etc. He broke Rondo’s arm on a totally unnecessary tackle, and broke Kobe’s nose in an ALL-STAR GAME because Kobe took him to school on the baseline. He’s kicked other players in the groin, shoulder-tackled players on loose balls. Each of these incidents seems to follow a play where he feels like he was fouled or where someone was able to make a play on him, like Paul George did.
There will always be apologists like Armen Dacity out there for any player, but when other elite players in the NBA call Wade a dirty player, it isn’t like that’s a term they loosely throw around. He has earned that reputation by intentionally committing unsportsmanlike acts of violence over a period of many years.
When I first saw the play, and the slow-motion replay, it clearly looked intentional to me.
Then, as I’ve noted, you are retarded.
Not one person associated with the Pacers has asserted it was intentional. The league is not investigating it as an intentional act.
The only people claiming it was intentional are a few brain-damaged Pacer Homers. Get a life.
And… P.S. Wade is not a dirty player. He takes 20 hits for every 1 he inflicts.
Are you kidding me? This article and line of reasoning is pathetic and so is this poll. Total accidental contact and result. Own up, people!
own up Wade!the commissiner shoudl act on this