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Kurtenbach: Donald Trump picked the wrong team to fight
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Allen
Sep 24, 2017, 12:15:43 PM9/24/17
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Yes, and another thing: Curry is one of the most, if not THE most,
likeable superstars in sports history. Trump is going to lose this PR
battle with Curry so badly. -AL
===================================================
Kurtenbach: Donald Trump picked the wrong team to fight
http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/09/24/donald-trump-stephen-curry-nfl-tweet-white-house-lebron-james/
OAKLAND, CA – FEBRUARY 09: Head coach Steve Kerr of the Golden State
Warriors talks to Stephen Curry #30 during their game against the
Houston Rockets at ORACLE Arena on February 9, 2016 in Oakland,
California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that,
by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the
terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by
Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
By DIETER KURTENBACH | dkurt...@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News
Group
September 24, 2017 at 5:30 am
OAKLAND — Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but Donald Trump
picked a fight on Twitter.
The President of the United States, the so-called leader of the free
world, carrying all of the responsibilities of that office and position,
decided that he needed to call out Stephen Curry on social media before
the sun came up here on the West Coast Saturday morning.
In doing so, the president picked a fight with the entire Golden State
Warriors’ franchise.
And that’s a fight he cannot win.
Related Articles
Warriors: “We accept that President Trump has made it clear that we are
not invited” to White House
Kurtenbach: Carmelo Anthony makes Oklahoma City the Warriors’ biggest threat
Kurtenbach: Donald Trump made the Warriors’ White House visit decision a
no-brainer
Donald Trump ‘withdraws’ White House invitation to Warriors
Trump says Stephen Curry’s White House invitation has been ‘withdrawn’
Because if there’s one team in the world that’s equipped to handle a
ridiculous, unprecedented, media duel with Trump, it’s the Warriors.
The Dubs deal with that kind of stuff every day. They’re well-rehearsed.
Taking on Trump was child’s play.
The context of the situation is absurd and frankly, sad. Perhaps we
shouldn’t have expected any better.
The crux is this: Trump revoked an invitation for Curry to visit the
White House in his tweet Saturday. It doesn’t matter that the Warriors
were never technically invited, or that had they been invited, they were
never going accept the invitation — Trump, as Warriors coach Steve Kerr
put it: “broke up with us before we broke up with him.”
The Warriors were planning on discussing and voting on the White House
visit on Saturday. Everyone had a good idea what the end result would
be, but the Warriors wanted to make sure that everyone could speak their
mind on the issue.
Trump took the matter out of their hands with his tweet.
In many ways, the president did the Warriors a favor — by removing the
onus from the Warriors, they won’t have to face a season of questions
about their decision to not to the White House.
But he also forced the Warriors to respond to his comments, not only
about Curry, but about the NFL’s peaceful protests, and Charlottesville,
too.
In doing so, the Warriors were thoughtful, authentic, and pitch-perfect.
Round one to Golden State.
What struck me most about the Warriors’ comments Saturday was how
disappointed they were — not in the fact that they wouldn’t be able to
go to the White House (again, they wouldn’t have gone had they actually
been invited) but in the situation as a whole.
“We’re going to try to be mature about the situation, be grown-ups, keep
moving on,” David West said. “It’s sad, you know — there’s got to be
maturity, across the board.”
Draymond Green, Curry, Kerr, and general manager Bob Myers all handled
themselves with that “maturity” West referenced, but it was the
37-year-old forward’s nine-minute media session that resonated strongest
Saturday.
Green had been to the White House. So had Curry. Steve Kerr could lose
track of how many times he’s gone, he’s won so many titles.
West has never been.
In the closing moments of Game 5 of the 2017 NBA Finals, when it was
clear that the Warriors were going to claim the title, the cameras
panned to Kevin Durant. That makes sense — it was his first title and
his story was the predominant narrative of the season.
But they should have panned to West.
The two-time All-Star labored for 14 years, played more than 30,000
minutes, and sacrificed millions of dollars to win his first NBA title.
He deserved the full championship experience, and while a White House
visit seems trivial — it is part of that championship experience.
And had anyone else been in the Oval Office, he would have been excited
to go.
The Warriors weren’t given the chance to discuss and vote on a White
House visit, but had they, West would have sided with Curry, Durant, and
Andre Iguodala in saying “no”. It’s understandable, but it’s also a
shame that he could never entertain the notion of partaking in a photo
op with the president.
To West, it’s all about respect. And why would he want to smile for a
photo with someone he believes doesn’t respect him?
“Just think about this: all of us, if we’re in this professional
athletic arena, we’re in the highest tax bracket in the land,” West
said. “I don’t think people take that into account. Oftentimes you hear
people qualify their statements by saying ‘I’m a taxpayer’ or ‘I’m a
citizen’ or “I’m a mother or father’ as if black people aren’t those
things.”
“The office of the White House is supposed to have some tact, some sort
of dignity… I don’t think we have anything that’s he’s done that we can
say to our children ’emulate this’.”
West and the rest of the Warriors handled themselves in a manner that
should be emulated, though.
Trump’s comments on peaceful protests in the NFL — he called players who
take a knee “sons of bitches” who should be fired on the spot — could
well lead to more professional athletes speaking out about the president
and his administration in the coming weeks and months.
One can hope those athletes follow the lead of the Warriors.
The Warriors had no problem standing up for their values and beliefs on
Saturday, speaking clearly about the situation at hand and expressing
their true feelings on it. Whether you agree with their stances or not,
it’s unimpeachable that they represented themselves with far more tact
than the president.
Again, if we’re keeping score in Trump vs. the Warriors, Golden State is
ahead.
And with Trump seemingly wanting to take on professional athletes
everywhere – what else can you infer from his comments on the NFL? — I
can’t help but think that the Warriors would be happy to be at the
vanguard that resistance, too.
Yes, basketball season is about to start, but a much more important game
is afoot.
And if the Warriors are leading the way, you’d have to think they’ll win
that game too.
likeable superstars in sports history. Trump is going to lose this PR
battle with Curry so badly. -AL
===================================================
Kurtenbach: Donald Trump picked the wrong team to fight
http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/09/24/donald-trump-stephen-curry-nfl-tweet-white-house-lebron-james/
OAKLAND, CA – FEBRUARY 09: Head coach Steve Kerr of the Golden State
Warriors talks to Stephen Curry #30 during their game against the
Houston Rockets at ORACLE Arena on February 9, 2016 in Oakland,
California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that,
by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the
terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by
Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
By DIETER KURTENBACH | dkurt...@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News
Group
September 24, 2017 at 5:30 am
OAKLAND — Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but Donald Trump
picked a fight on Twitter.
The President of the United States, the so-called leader of the free
world, carrying all of the responsibilities of that office and position,
decided that he needed to call out Stephen Curry on social media before
the sun came up here on the West Coast Saturday morning.
In doing so, the president picked a fight with the entire Golden State
Warriors’ franchise.
And that’s a fight he cannot win.
Related Articles
Warriors: “We accept that President Trump has made it clear that we are
not invited” to White House
Kurtenbach: Carmelo Anthony makes Oklahoma City the Warriors’ biggest threat
Kurtenbach: Donald Trump made the Warriors’ White House visit decision a
no-brainer
Donald Trump ‘withdraws’ White House invitation to Warriors
Trump says Stephen Curry’s White House invitation has been ‘withdrawn’
Because if there’s one team in the world that’s equipped to handle a
ridiculous, unprecedented, media duel with Trump, it’s the Warriors.
The Dubs deal with that kind of stuff every day. They’re well-rehearsed.
Taking on Trump was child’s play.
The context of the situation is absurd and frankly, sad. Perhaps we
shouldn’t have expected any better.
The crux is this: Trump revoked an invitation for Curry to visit the
White House in his tweet Saturday. It doesn’t matter that the Warriors
were never technically invited, or that had they been invited, they were
never going accept the invitation — Trump, as Warriors coach Steve Kerr
put it: “broke up with us before we broke up with him.”
The Warriors were planning on discussing and voting on the White House
visit on Saturday. Everyone had a good idea what the end result would
be, but the Warriors wanted to make sure that everyone could speak their
mind on the issue.
Trump took the matter out of their hands with his tweet.
In many ways, the president did the Warriors a favor — by removing the
onus from the Warriors, they won’t have to face a season of questions
about their decision to not to the White House.
But he also forced the Warriors to respond to his comments, not only
about Curry, but about the NFL’s peaceful protests, and Charlottesville,
too.
In doing so, the Warriors were thoughtful, authentic, and pitch-perfect.
Round one to Golden State.
What struck me most about the Warriors’ comments Saturday was how
disappointed they were — not in the fact that they wouldn’t be able to
go to the White House (again, they wouldn’t have gone had they actually
been invited) but in the situation as a whole.
“We’re going to try to be mature about the situation, be grown-ups, keep
moving on,” David West said. “It’s sad, you know — there’s got to be
maturity, across the board.”
Draymond Green, Curry, Kerr, and general manager Bob Myers all handled
themselves with that “maturity” West referenced, but it was the
37-year-old forward’s nine-minute media session that resonated strongest
Saturday.
Green had been to the White House. So had Curry. Steve Kerr could lose
track of how many times he’s gone, he’s won so many titles.
West has never been.
In the closing moments of Game 5 of the 2017 NBA Finals, when it was
clear that the Warriors were going to claim the title, the cameras
panned to Kevin Durant. That makes sense — it was his first title and
his story was the predominant narrative of the season.
But they should have panned to West.
The two-time All-Star labored for 14 years, played more than 30,000
minutes, and sacrificed millions of dollars to win his first NBA title.
He deserved the full championship experience, and while a White House
visit seems trivial — it is part of that championship experience.
And had anyone else been in the Oval Office, he would have been excited
to go.
The Warriors weren’t given the chance to discuss and vote on a White
House visit, but had they, West would have sided with Curry, Durant, and
Andre Iguodala in saying “no”. It’s understandable, but it’s also a
shame that he could never entertain the notion of partaking in a photo
op with the president.
To West, it’s all about respect. And why would he want to smile for a
photo with someone he believes doesn’t respect him?
“Just think about this: all of us, if we’re in this professional
athletic arena, we’re in the highest tax bracket in the land,” West
said. “I don’t think people take that into account. Oftentimes you hear
people qualify their statements by saying ‘I’m a taxpayer’ or ‘I’m a
citizen’ or “I’m a mother or father’ as if black people aren’t those
things.”
“The office of the White House is supposed to have some tact, some sort
of dignity… I don’t think we have anything that’s he’s done that we can
say to our children ’emulate this’.”
West and the rest of the Warriors handled themselves in a manner that
should be emulated, though.
Trump’s comments on peaceful protests in the NFL — he called players who
take a knee “sons of bitches” who should be fired on the spot — could
well lead to more professional athletes speaking out about the president
and his administration in the coming weeks and months.
One can hope those athletes follow the lead of the Warriors.
The Warriors had no problem standing up for their values and beliefs on
Saturday, speaking clearly about the situation at hand and expressing
their true feelings on it. Whether you agree with their stances or not,
it’s unimpeachable that they represented themselves with far more tact
than the president.
Again, if we’re keeping score in Trump vs. the Warriors, Golden State is
ahead.
And with Trump seemingly wanting to take on professional athletes
everywhere – what else can you infer from his comments on the NFL? — I
can’t help but think that the Warriors would be happy to be at the
vanguard that resistance, too.
Yes, basketball season is about to start, but a much more important game
is afoot.
And if the Warriors are leading the way, you’d have to think they’ll win
that game too.
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