|
The NBA draft is Thursday night. Sure, you can watch the television coverage, which will provide plenty of information to satisfy a typical NBA fan. But if that's the only medium by which you're consuming this draft, you're really missing out.  If TV and next-morning, traditional media coverage is the main feature, consider social media the DVD extras, giving fans the opportunity to get all the behind-the-scenes goodness and up-to-the-minute thoughts they'd never be able to soak in just sitting in the theater. Let's take the Phoenix Suns, for example. As I've written previously, they, along with the Orlando Magic, have implemented Twackle on their site, which aggregates any Suns-related Twitter chatter directly to the team's official Web site. So if you want to know what anyone -- be it a media member, NBA blogger, fan, organization, celebrity, current NBA player, former NBA player -- on Twitter is saying about the team's draft selections in real time, head there. Further, the team's Twitter account will be active from draft headquarters. When TV quickly goes from the Suns' No. 14 pick to the Pistons' No. 15 pick, that will likely be that. But if you have a laptop in your hand, or a cell phone in your pocket, it's easy to soak in plenty more analysis, opinion and information on that selection if you so desire. I know Twitter has been beaten into America's collective brains these past few months. But its utility is really highlighted on a sports night like this: You can essentially turn it into an RSS feed of relevant content as a supplement to what you're currently watching on your television -- no participation from your end necessary. And remember, this stuff won't just be coming from teams, media member or fans: It will be coming from players who are expected to be drafted high, such as Blake Griffin and Hasheem Thabeet. Via CoveritLive, the Mavericks will be playing host to a live chat during the draft. The Warriors, too, are taking a similar step, but they're using Facebook to facilitate their live chat. The NBA's official social media sites will be buzzing as well. So yes, the TV will work just fine. But if you pick and choose wisely from the large pool of information available online, you'll be swimming with much more knowledge. Elsewhere
You'd be hard-pressed to find an athlete-blogger as smart as the Atlanta Dream's Chantelle Anderson. In her latest entry, she's talking about pimps. And rather eloquently.  "I admire pimps. Ya, I said it. And no, not because I approve of what they do; but because they are open and upfront about doing something that most of us find detestable," she writes. "Many of us don't have the courage to do that in our own lives, even though the bulk of our actions are way more marginal than selling a woman's body for profit. I'm not saying I wish we all acted like pimps in our dealings with people. But what if we all had a pimp's MENTALITY in terms of OUR OWN intentions and behavior in our relationships with others?" "
I've never been a player, but I've done some very pimpish things. I can admit that because above all, one thing has always been constant in my relationships: honesty. Each person involved knew exactly what they were dealing with. "You see, a player plays games with people's emotions, time, effort, etc. They lie and they manipulate. A pimp tells those getting involved what the situation is up front, and then lets them make an informed decision about whether or not they want to participate."
|
