Posted Jan 24, 2005, 2:15 PM ET
Its no secret that in the past I have called Peter Vescey and Sam Smith on the carpet for writing things relating to me or the Mavs without ever having talked to me.
Well guess what, in the past months I have talked to both of them. Peter Vescey has found email and now will actually email me and ask me what whats going on rather than telling me what Im doing in his column. I wont always answer him, but at least he will ask and I can tell him when he has some facts wrong.
Sam Smith is still clueless. I got to speak to him face to face when we played in Chicago and told him so. It was a pleasure to do so. He didnt really argue when I suggested that he misleads people into believing that what he writes is fact rather than his opinion . I guess I shouldnt be surprised. His column just reflects the cultures of the company and newspaper he works for. You would think given what they are going through, the Chicago Tribune would offer disclaimers around everything he writes.
But I digress.
There is another writer that I dont correspond with , or talk to, that has taken upon himself to write what he thinks Im thinking. The new moron in town is Chad Ford of ESPN.com
To think that ESPN let David Aldridge go for this. David Aldridge checked his facts. David Aldridge would email me in the middle of the night asking one last time if he had his facts correct, or if it was something that couldnt be commented on, to let you know what he was going with to make sure he got it right.
I remember one time David and I got into a disagreement about what fans thought about the game,its players and costs. I told him that I thought fans loved the game, and all he had to do was talk to them to find out. He did. He went and sat in the stands and talked to the customers of the NBA and asked them what they thought. When they told him they thought the game was fun and affordable, he wrote just that. With quotes from the fans.
So instead of a Aldridge, a reporter with great relationships around the NBA and access to information, they go with a guy,who at least in my case doesnt take the time to email me and ask. Its not like he cant find my email.
Its not a suprise. Like Sam Smith, he is just one of the guys who would rather not let facts get in the way.
The irony of it all, is that he writes for the ESPN Insider section of the website.The sad part is that ESPN.com charges for access to what he writes. This guy is so far from the inside of whats going on , that ESPN should be embarrased to take subscription money from its members.
I wonder if ESPN.com is kicking themselves for the one they let get away<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->
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