The NCAA 2009 Final Four festivities will be in Detroit this April. And, in an interesting and ironic twist, The Fab Five (aka Voldemorts) will be reunited at a charity event at...get this....the Motor City Casino.Yep, Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson will be in Detroit to benefit the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History.
As you may recall, this band of fabulous freshmen led the Michigan basketball team to the NCAA title games in 1992 and 1993. Right before
leading the Michigan basketball program into perdition......Now the program may have made it's peace with Jalen...apparently no act is egregious enough to turn down a $240,000 endowed scholarship. Granted, Jalen wasn't "down" with Ed Martin like Chris Webber, Robert Traylor, Maurice Taylor, and Louis Bullock were, but I'm guessing those guys prollally bought some dinners for Jalen once in a while...them bein' all flush and whatnot from Mr. Martin's generosity.....I find it ridiculously hard to believe that everyone involved with the program didn't know EXACTLY what was going on. Hell, even graduate students like me heard the rumors at the time.
As a complete pseudo non sequitor--I was watching ESPN's "Outside The Lines" this weekend and they had a very interesting story about the 'package deals' that abound in college basketball. So and so's high school coach or daddy or AAU coach being hired by a particular school in order to insure the matriculation of one or more players.....seems like the same sort of quid pro quo gig that Ed Martin (and many a booster like him) had going to me, and why it's not being addressed is beyond me....BUT I DIGRESSSo here are my top 10 comments to the Voldemorts and the Benefit Organizers:
#10) At a casino??? really??? like the marriage of college sports and gambling hasn't gotten everyone in deep shit already??
#9) Hmmm a charity event for a museum...how about a dinner at the Ritz or something? or if it's really about basketball, how about a little 5 on 5 game? you gotta take all the altruistic folk to the casino
for the alcohol, gambling, and 'dancers'. for shame.#8) Amazing chutzpah to be playing off your infamy at Michigan. Don't you guys get that you should be ashamed not proclaimed?
#7) Why during the tourney? if the benefit is for the Black History Museum why not have the benefit in February---er, during...wait for it..........................
Black History Month???
#6) Do you really think that people want to see you guys all fat and bald now??
#5) Like you didn't embarrass Michigan enough?
#4) you've got to come back and bring up all the old stories (and wounds for us) including a) the recruiting car accident, b) Ed Martin, c) NCAA sanctions d) the banner return etc. No thanks.
#3) We don't want or need the negative attention you will once again generate for the University of Michigan and our basketball program that is just barely coming off of life-support. Please don't torpedo it AGAIN.
#2) Your presence will be a distraction to the tourney---and will result in the continous replay of that damned time out that wasn't.....
#1) You are going to steal the spotlight from the City and all of the positive perceptions that could come from holding a benefit for a museum AT the museum. Instead of highlighting the cultural aspects of our city and perhaps doing just a bit to rebuild our image you've got to go to the Motor City Casino---setting up every damned sports writer and TV wonk for negative comments on this city about gambling, losing, betting, show girls etc etc etc.
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9 comments:
Wow. So tell me how you really feel T9.
Getting the F5 together in a casino.... it just makes the whole story even more surreal. This is like a bad dream that never ends.
Truth be told, I have not really cared one ounce about basketball (NCAA or NBA) since the truth came out about these clowns. In my opinion, basketball is just one small step above boxing and pro wrestling in the world of sport.
It's all fixed. Just a case of the degree of fixed. That's why baseball came so hard on Pete Rose.....he got it out into the open.
Speaking a gambling...
Who would have bet that Jalen Rose would end up with the most successful NBA career and post-basketball "man" of the F5 ?
Jalen has done a nice job of transitioning into being an adult.
It really is sad that he will forever be lumped together with CWeb and the Ed Martin nightmare.
And oh yes, I have two Peaches and Herb songs on my ipod. "Reunited" AND "Shake Your Groove Thing".
I challenge anyone top that for pathetic music.
you know, it's not often that you can get a horse's ass, a casino image, and a nun into the same post.
I'm just sayin'.....
Nice. I thought you got two horses-asses into the post.
One of them is wearing #4... [Snare drum sound effect]
Andy said it all in the first comment.
Agreed, it's only basketball. The sport for people that don't want to get hit.
Lighten up on yourselves. Most people know that this kind of stuff is based on individual greed and not the University.
Here's the positive spin: everyone needs a dent in their armor to retain their humility. People don't identify with nor love psuedo-perfectionism. They love those who overcome difficulties with class.
Keep your heads up and ignore the cheapshots.
Speaking of the TO that wasn't I always wondered why exactly that was a foul? They should just keep play going as if nothing has happened because they don't have the ability to call TO. Wasn't t a technical foul or something also? Seems kinda harsh to me for a very trivial thing like forgetting you're out of TOs.
i'm pretty sure this reunion HAS to be the work of a Buckeye fan somewhere!
Before the ceremony..
* Marlin Jackson is going to christen a new ship with a champagne bottle. It's a Pakastani ship so he can hit it as hard as he needs to.
* Larry Harrison Jr is going to cut the ribbon at a brand new Sperm Bank. He'll also be giving the first donation - they are confident they'll be able to get enough off of the floor of the entry way to qualify as a full donation.
* Adrian Arrington will be giving a lecture on the dangers of being thrown from a moving car.
* and finally Marques Slocum will be at the Detroit Zoo actually fucking a lion.
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