Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Roger Mason Jr. and The Fragility of the Borderline NBA Player

Roger Mason Jr. has been a revelation for the San Antonio Spurs, helping them stay afloat as they've tried to weather the injuries to Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. He's posted a PER of 16.58 to date, topping last year's 13.80, which was the first season in which he'd had a PER above 7.71 or a FG% above .355 in the NBA.

Pretty much every time I see him in a highlight package, I think of this (click for larger image):


That's a photo from three years ago, when I was in Rome during Thanksgiving week, and caught a ULEB Cup game (it's similar to Euroleague, but with the next-best teams across Europe, much like the UEFA Cup in soccer) between Lottomatica Roma and Hapoel Migdal Jerusalem.

That is Roger Mason at the bottom of the photo, with a headband, standing behind the three-point line. He played for Jerusalem and had a nice game that evening, with 22 points on 6 threes in 37 minutes.

The point guard in the photo is Horace Jenkins, and he caught my eye at the game, not just because he's a D3 legend, but also because just five months prior to this photo, he had been sitting behind the Pistons bench during the NBA Finals, on the roster but inactive.

I was just struck by what a thin line it is for guys like this, who are on the border of NBA rosters, between the glamour of the NBA stage (the biggest stage, in Jenkins' case) and the complete lack of fanfare of playing before 2000 people in Europe.

I know this is nothing earth-shattering - the stories of guys like Stephen Jackson and Mario Elie who've hooped around the globe before settling in the league are well-documented, and Paul Shirley's made a living off of the storyline.

It was just somehow more stark to experience it in person, in a high-school-sized gym whose "amenities" consisted of one high-school style concession area in the surrounding hallway (there were no "concourses").

Don't get me wrong, it's still a pretty nice life, getting paid six figures to play a game and travel the world. It's just such a narrow line between the fame and dream of the NBA lifestyle, and obscurity.

In any event, I'm sure that Roger Mason, after signing a 2-year, $8M deal with San Antonio this summer, is especially thankful to be securely in the NBA this Thanksgiving. Best of luck to the many players toiling around Europe trying to keep their NBA dreams alive.

And Happy Thanksgiving to all of The Painted Area's readers out there. Don't forget that the Hornets-Nuggets game at 10:30 ET on TNT is a hell of a lot more appealing than any of Turkey Day's NFL games.

10 Comments:

At 8:07 AM, Blogger Timothy Varner said...

I'm sure the Spurs are thankful too. Good stuff.

 
At 6:26 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

 
At 11:28 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Did anyone else notice that the picture is one of the ultra-rare basketball action shots that captures the exact tiny fraction of a second when the dribbled basketball is contacting the floor?

-Oldman Grimes

 
At 11:18 PM, Anonymous Agen Judi Online Terpercaya said...

It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not.

 
At 1:57 AM, Anonymous when can i take a pregnancy test calculator said...

This is very great and brilliant information.

 
At 6:16 PM, Blogger khairy said...

شركة تنظيف شقق بابها
شركة تنظيف كنب بابها
شركة تنظيف خزانات بابها
شركة تنظيف مجالس بابها
شركة تنظيف سجاد بابها
شركة تنظيف موكيت بابها

 
At 8:49 PM, Blogger AugustCollects said...

There is noticeably a bundle to know about this. I assume you made certain nice points in features also.

My.desktopnexus.com
Information
Click Here

 
At 5:43 PM, Blogger GloriaTerry said...

After study a few of the blog posts on your website now, and I truly like your way of blogging. I bookmarked it to my bookmark website list and will be checking back soon. Pls check out my web site as well and let me know what you think.

Ddrfreak.com
Information
Click Here
Visit Web

 
At 12:52 AM, Blogger LeviFisher said...

You should take part in a contest for one of the best blogs on the web. I will recommend this site!

Swiatkarpia.com
Information
Click Here
Visit Web

 
At 5:32 PM, Blogger MarkNelson said...

Would you be interested in exchanging links?

110designs.com
Information
Click Here
Visit Web

 

Post a Comment

<< Home