Re: In case you weren\'t certain that Marbury is nuts
 

Update:

He now wants to play in Italy.

Re: In case you weren\'t certain that Marbury is nuts
 

[ QUOTE ]
Irish you are kind of an idiot. Starbury never said he was like Jordan. He said he wanted to be like Jordan.

Starbury makes a blog entry that is positive in every aspect - wants to win a championship, wants to give people cheap high quality goods - and you call him crazy. Maybe you are the crazy one.

[/ QUOTE ]

I take it you didn't actually read the article, nor my post about it. Neither I nor Marbury said that he was like Jordan. I know that's laughable, although I doubt he does. He said he wanted to be like Jordan on the court, which is hilarious given his character and past performances. Not sure where your confusion lies.

And wanting to win a championship is great - I'm pretty sure that every player in the NBA feels the same way. However, if Pau Gasol said "I want to go play in Korea in two years after winning the Championship with the Memphis Grizzlies", well...I guess if you didn't see the hilarity in Starbury's comments, you won't see them there. Basically, there's a big difference between "I want to win the title" and "in two years, after we win the title". One is optimistic, one delusional.

I think it's great though that so many support his nascent business venture - but are you people serious? He named his company after himself (big surprise there, I know), refers to it as a "movement", targets a certain niche and this warrants praise? You must think Britney Spears is a saint for selling her own perfume line. She just wants lower income girls (her primary niche, sad to say) to smell nice.

Marbury is a clown. He's a perennial loser at the pro level who's demonstrated beyond any doubt that his sole concern is himself. The only difference between now and the recent past is that he used to at least impersonate an impact NBA guard with gaudy stats - now he doesn't even have that. Ricky Davis is more productive than he is.

Get a grip folks...he's been watching ESPN the past week, seen the adulation that Beckham has received and thinks that he can be a mini-Beckham if he takes himself to Europe. It's all about him...

Re: In case you weren\'t certain that Marbury is nuts
 

One of the first things I'm doing when I get to LA is going to a Steve and Berry's and buying a pair of Starbury's.

Re: In case you weren\'t certain that Marbury is nuts
 

[ QUOTE ]

I think it's great though that so many support his nascent business venture - but are you people serious? He named his company after himself (big surprise there, I know), refers to it as a "movement", targets a certain niche and this warrants praise? You must think Britney Spears is a saint for selling her own perfume line. She just wants lower income girls (her primary niche, sad to say) to smell nice.


[/ QUOTE ]

What warrants praise is that he's selling shoes at a price that is affordable. You don't seem to get it.

Comparing this to Spears coming out with perfume is hilarious.

Re: In case you weren\'t certain that Marbury is nuts
 

Why can't Starbury be both a good person and a crazy motherphuker? They are not mutually exclusive you know!

Re: In case you weren\'t certain that Marbury is nuts
 

I never said he wasn't a good person, so long as someone can be completely self-absorbed and still be a good person. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[ QUOTE ]
What warrants praise is that he's selling shoes at a price that is affordable. You don't seem to get it.

[/ QUOTE ]
Much like you don't seem to get basic economics. $150 shoes are affordable - that's why they're priced at that level. Companies generally do things to maximize revenue. Starbury is no different - they just know they can't compete with Nike, adidas, Reebok, etc so they target a different market. Again...please explain to me why a sound business decision constitutes charity.

If he were buying $1M worth of shoes and donating them to lower-income kids, I would be impressed. Selling cheaper shoes to lower-income kids fails to do the same. Sorry.

If you don't like Britney, I assume then that Walmart (or K-Mart, whatever) is the height of compassion and generosity then? Screw those evil punks at Target, Best Buy and Sears!

Re: In case you weren\'t certain that Marbury is nuts
 

Irish,

It's not just that he is providing a cheaper alternative for basketball shoes. He is also trying to change the line of thinking prevalent amongst inner city kids that they have to have $150 basketball shoes to be cool. You don't find that commendable?

Re: In case you weren\'t certain that Marbury is nuts
 

[ QUOTE ]
I never said he wasn't a good person, so long as someone can be completely self-absorbed and still be a good person. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[ QUOTE ]
What warrants praise is that he's selling shoes at a price that is affordable. You don't seem to get it.

[/ QUOTE ]
Much like you don't seem to get basic economics. $150 shoes are affordable - that's why they're priced at that level. Companies generally do things to maximize revenue. Starbury is no different - they just know they can't compete with Nike, adidas, Reebok, etc so they target a different market. Again...please explain to me why a sound business decision constitutes charity.

If he were buying $1M worth of shoes and donating them to lower-income kids, I would be impressed. Selling cheaper shoes to lower-income kids fails to do the same. Sorry.

If you don't like Britney, I assume then that Walmart (or K-Mart, whatever) is the height of compassion and generosity then? Screw those evil punks at Target, Best Buy and Sears!

[/ QUOTE ]

From a June article:
The point guard from Coney Island discussed how he and the mayor are developing outreach programs in Mount Vernon, and the importance of donating money and spending time talking to young children.

"We want to help Mount Vernon and give back to them and let the community be a force to be reckoned with," Marbury said. "It's not about me as a basketball player. It's what goes on outside of basketball."

Marbury briefly posed for pictures and signed autographs with the kids in the high school hallways on his way in and out of the school's television studio, where the show is taped.

There were plans for him to hold "meet and greets" in Fleetwood afterward, but those were cut short because of family commitments.

Marbury briefly discussed his most recent charity work, which includes the donation of $1 million apiece to the NYPD, New York Fire Department, New York teachers and EMTs through Starbury, his brand of low-cost sneakers and clothing.

He also has learned recently about the growing concern over autism, a developmental disability that affects one in every 150 children in the United States.

"The money being allocated through Starbury are going to the people who need it," Marbury said. "I found out just last night how severe (autism) can be to a family. Those are the things that I want to be able to put money towards. Something revolutionary."

Community outreach programs, millions to teachers and emergency responders, and now possibly money to help fight autism?

That selfish prick!!

I'm not sure what Marbury has done to make you so jealous of him that you have the need to tear him down. He is what he is on the court; we all know that. But to act like he doesn't do a lot of great things off it, is just ignorant.

Re: In case you weren\'t certain that Marbury is nuts
 

Very cool. Didn't know that about him. He's still a nutjob, but at least he's a nutjob who appears to have a heart of gold. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Re: In case you weren\'t certain that Marbury is nuts
 

[ QUOTE ]

If he were buying $1M worth of shoes and donating them to lower-income kids, I would be impressed. Selling cheaper shoes to lower-income kids fails to do the same. Sorry.

[/ QUOTE ]

What Marbury is trying to do is much more impressive than just donating $1 million dollars. First of all he's not just selling cheap shoes, he's trying to market a line that is of similar quality to the $150 line for far with the intention of altering the perception that more expensive = better to some degree. If the approach is successful the impact will be far and away greater than any donation he could possible make as it can spread to any other area of goods his target audience demands.
Secondly by making it a business turning a profit he makes it both sustainable on its own, far easier to expand (reinvesting those profits), and his success will encourage others to do similar things offering more and more lower cost lines of high quality items.