PDX Pup Has Felt Mo’s Pain, Sans Tears
PDX Pup: I gotta say I DO feel for Adam Morrison -- I've been in his shoes exactly and then some. (My team suffered several 
heartbreaking losses in the NCAA tournament, but we were in the Final Four, not the Sweet Sixteen). Anyways, as I was watching the drama in Oakland, I was hoping Tom Hanks would come out on the floor and recite his monologue from "A League of Their Own." (Are you crying? Are you crying? ARE YOU CRYING? There's no crying, there's no crying in baseball...) There's a time and a place for everything--walking off the floor shedding a few tears is expressive and shows you have emotions, but flailing and rolling on the floor shows why JJ Redick may just be drafted higher than you, should you decide to go in June. You should've left the floor with your head held high and save the bawling/wailing/sobbing for the locker room, the team bus, your hotel room. When my team blew a 2-0 lead at halftime vs. Notre Dame in the semis at the Final Four and lost 3-2 (the 3rd year in a row we went out at the hands of ND, all 3 in the Final Four), there was no rolling around midfield wailing--just graciously accepting the consolation trophy in front of all the fans, and then as we were walking out of the stadium, out of sight, one of my teammates chucked her trophy into the cyclone fence and left it there (gotta love those kids from Boise!). Express your frustrations and sadness, but when you're still on the court do it in a way that befits a player of your caliber--when was the last time you saw Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant flailing on the floor after a heartbreaking defeat? Those are two guys who are fierce competitors as well. Show all the fans that you can be a fierce competitor AND a gracious loser.
DFO: Pup's sorta outed herself here, as a top-notch athlete and former member of the high-flying University of Portland women's soccer teams, which in recent years have won two national championships. She knows whereof she speaks when it comes to the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat, probably more than anyone else who posts here. I'm humbled that she takes time to be part of our three-ring circus.
