Why I Find Basketball Message Boards So Interesting

I am one of the world's biggest sports fans, and when it comes to what I watch and when, it does not really matter, because I do not discriminate. I also like to go to sports message boards and see other people's opinions on certain matters, and one thing I could not help buy notice was how many people get on basketball message boards and act like they know more about the game than the coaches themselves. This is an issue for all sports, but especially for basketball.

I remember there was one game in particular, it was between the Lakers and 76ers, and it was in the actual NBA finals. One of Philadelphia's players was pulled from the game very late in what would turn out to be the deciding game for Los Angeles, and fans on these basketball message boards were furious about it. They were calling the coach an idiot and asking why he was even there, forgetting about the fact that this coach had gotten the 76ers to the NBA finals.

In an interview after the game, the opposing coach said that he understood why the player was pulled and why his counterpart made that move. He said it was to get the players around him to play better, so that when they put him back in, they might be able to pull the game out. Shortly thereafter, fans on several basketball message board were ripping this coach and saying that his opinion didn't make any sense and that he was just trying to cover for a colleague and on and on and on.

I remember another game where one of the coaches had a player foul out in the fourth quarter, and the team went on to lose. I looked at some of the basketball message boards following the game, and there were all of the questions of why was he left in so long, and why was he not made to sit down and come back in the game late. What I found particularly amusing about this one, though, was that those same fans were criticizing the coach the week before for taking the same player out too early! It was a no-win situation for that poor coach!

I understand that criticism is part of the game and that especially when a team loses, there will be a lot of second guessing. The fact of the matter is that it is easy to do, to play Monday morning quarterback, and hind sight is 20/20 as the old saying goes. I would remind people of is that these coaches know what they are doing and have been at it in most cases for years. Maybe we should cut them a break!