Without question, the worst Bill Simmons article ever.

[Iplayboard]

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Did you ever read the article in which Simmons proclaimed that AI would undoubtedly be the greatest soccer player ever, if only he had taken up the sport?

What a clueless, US-centric retard.

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I'll agree that Bill Simmons can be US-centric. For instance he's trying to list sports stories from this summer that are upsetting, and he chooses to mention the possibility of Rosie joining the cast of a drama set around high school football, and yet he does not mention the scandal-ridden Tour de France from this year.

However, in the article you mention he certainly did not claim "AI would undoubtedly be the greatest soccer player ever". What he did write (in this piece) was:

He's an athletic freak. Iverson could have been an unbelievable soccer player. He could have been a world-class boxer and a remarkable defensive center fielder and base stealer. He could have picked his sport in track and field and competed for an Olympic spot. I can't fathom how much ground he could have covered on a tennis court.

Hyperbole maybe, but not on the level you put it. And he is not limiting the comparison to soccer.

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Actually you are dead wrong. It's my fault for not siting the specific article, but nevertheless you quoted the wrong one.

"By the way, I've been watching the World Cup for four weeks trying to decide which NBA players could have been dominant soccer players, eventually coming to three conclusions. First, Allen Iverson would have been the greatest soccer player ever -- better than Pele, better than Ronaldo, better than everyone. I think this is indisputable, actually."

Ya, Simmons is a douche.

Link

I see you acknowledged the said post, but I had already typed this one and I don't want to feel as though I've wasted the last ten minutes of my life.

[Bulldog]

Is there a name for the internet phenomenon when it becomes universally cool to rip something that was previously believed to be awesome, just because others are ripping said thing?

[ThaSaltCracka]

it's called "bulldogging".

[Dids]

Max,

I don't think many of us would argue that Simmons wasn't fantastic when he first started. He's just become pretty inarguably (although it appears Bulldog might try) worse.

I think his podcasts are great. He still says some occasionally stupid stuff, but they mos def play to his strengths.

[Max Raker]

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Max,

I don't think many of us would argue that Simmons wasn't fantastic when he first started. He's just become pretty inarguably (although it appears Bulldog might try) worse.

I think his podcasts are great. He still says some occasionally stupid stuff, but they mos def play to his strengths.

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No i pretty much agree. I think his columns are still ok but when he first started they where must reads. I remember thinking how unique his style was when he first came out. I really wish I had thought of it, it seems so obvious now, a dude that likes sports and pop culture writing about whatever he feels like. I think now alot of people do this so it isn't as fresh and he has probably stopped trying as hard as he used to.

I feel like in his podcasts he is still bringing his A game so to speak because he is afraid of looking like a moron since it is pretty new to him.

I love the part when he calls his buddy at the end who is a yanks fan. Being a internet poker player when I get bored during the day I call my friends at work to kill time. The first five seconds are exactly the same; the guy at work answers really professional sounding like this is John Mitchell and I say somthing stupid like Yo Johnny Boy or whatever. Then he can relax and talk like a normal person again. Simmons' strength was always his ability to relate average dudes i guess.

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I would also posit that long-time readers are just worn out on his shtick. A lot of his columns are of the style where every sentence he's trying to make a joke or be cute and quite frankly I find it exhausting at times. It's like David Sedaris - the guy is a hella good writer IMO but I stopped reading his stuff because every sentence was a bunch line and it became almost annoying.

I might not be explaining that too well but hopefully it made sense.