Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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__Gamecock Sports _ Raptors' Carter nothing but a 'no-talent hack' I David Cloninger Who Else? i It is very rare for this column to devote any space whatsoever to the in tellectually-devoid NBA, more com monly known as Nothing But Animals. However, after a particularly interest ing bit of news Monday, I feel com pelled. I couldn’t help but notice that Toronto Raptors star forward Vince Carter scored 51 points the other night against Phoenix, further anointing him as one of the saviors for the NBA’s tar nished image. Boy, 51 points - that’s a lot. Of course, I, who have no basket ball skills of which to speak, could score 51 points in a game if I followed Vince’s example and shot from such whopping distances as 1 foot from the bucket. Vince Carter is nothing but a no talent hack, living off the NBA’s new superstar system of “if you can run fast and look good, you’re an automatic all star.” Carter was a hack at North Carolina two seasons ago, and he is still a hack. Big deal, he won the slam-dunk contest. So did Spud Webb and Dee Brown. Big deal, he can turn two flips and bank the ball off the fan sitting in Row F, Seat 22 before catching the rebound and putting it home. That.proves he’s an athlete, not a basketball player. Who cares if he could lead the Rap tors to an NBA title? I could get hit by a beer truck while crossing the street tomorrow.' Carter is part of the ever-increas ing influx of athletes, not. players, who are poisoning the NBA with their lack of shooting diversity and the fact they couldn’t set a 2-3 zone defense with two hands and a road map. Gone are the players like Larry Bird and Mag ic Johnson, who could score 35 points, snare 15 rebounds, nail seven 3-point ers and still have time to take their kids to supper after the game. Let’s look at the line score of the game. Carter scored 51 on 17-32 shots from the field, 13-13 from the free throw line and four of eight from the 3-point arc. Pretty impressive, right? Wong. I saw the tape of the game, and of the 17 field goals he hit, 15 were in the paint and were either layups or jumpers 2 feet from the hole. The free throws? There’s no ex cuse to miss a free throw, ever. (Un less, of course, you’re Shaquille O’Neal, who is cursed by the ghost of Pistol Pete Maravich for defacing the good name of LSU basketball.) Four 3-pointers? Even a blind squir rel finds an acom once in a while. The point I’m trying to make is for the fans to realize what they’re watch ing. Instead of good, clean basketball, a game of skill and competition, peo ple are watching Carter, Allen Iver son, Dennis Rodman, Latrell Sprewell and the rest of the Thugs ‘R’ Us com pete in a giant game of playground roundball. You remember what that was like, right? No blood, no foul, whoever could run the fastest was always picked first, and you had better not tie those shoes in the middle of a game or you’ll get a mouthful of asphalt. Fans and sportswriters alike love Carter because of his statuesque dunks and his high-flying style. Got news for you, Vince. Any id iot can dunk a basketball. That’s why you see so many taped-up wrists on guys riding the bench and thinking, “Man, how did I get hurt?” while the smart player uses his 10 to 15 foot jump shot to score and keep playing. I realize the jump shot has gone the way of the dodo in pro basket ball, but you can’t blame a guy for wax ing nostalgic when I keep seeing the NCAA world get raped by money-hun gry teams who need the faster, moie relatable-to-the-public player more than they need the 6-foot-2 kid who can hit from anywhere around the arc. As for Carter, yes, it’s true the man can dunk from anywhere on the court and can do amazing things with a bas ketball, which all has helped him be come the most popular sensation since Justin from N’Sync decided to shake things up and go back in the closet. For we ACC aficionados, we saw Vince do the same thing at UNC for three years, and what did it get him? Two consecutive losses in the Final Four and the reputation of being one of the last good players at UNC before Bill Guthridge started to recruit blue chippers like Julius Peppers and Jonathan Holmes. I’m not saying the kid’s a bad athlete. I wish I could do for five min utes what he will do in his NBA career. But, he is just another sad exam ple of how the NBA has devolved in to something strangely resembling hockey or wrestling - a “sport” for in competent bozos who get off on watch ing fights and brawls instead of the thrill of competition and team loyalty. The message seems to be, “Show what people are going to pay for, not what the game was intended for.” I think songwriter Randy Newman said it best when he said, “It’s money that matters.” That, and a couple of slam dunks, apparently. You may be eligible to: Have the rest of your tuition paid for until you graduate. Be paid 200 dollars a month until you graduate. Fly an F-14 at 1342 miles per hour. Drive a submarine under a polar ice cap. Dock a Destroyer in most any port in the world, and then spend the weekend there. Be in charge of a company of Marines. If you 1. Are a United States Citizen. 2. In Good Physical Health. . 3. Are at least 18 years of age and under 27 at the time of graduation. And have 1. Completed around two years of college with greater than a 2.50 GPA. Two-year scholarship applications are due the March 12th. Contact Lieutenant Todd Figanbaum at (803)-777-3451 or 888-248-7026 if interested. Fieanbta@sc.edu No previous experience required % University of South Carolina NROTC 2000 SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament March 2 March 3 March 4 March 5 1 Georgia 8 Alabama - Game 5 1 p.m. _ Game 1 1 p.m. _ 9 Kentucky 4 Auburn Game 9 6 p.m. 5 Mississippi State Game 7 7pm _ Game 3 7 p.m. 12 Ole Miss Gamell 5om - - 3 LSU_ CHAMPION 6 Vanderbilt Game8 9:3op.m. _ Game 4 9:30 p.m. 11 South Carolina -:- 2 Tennessee Gamel° 8:30 pm - 7 Florida_ Gamp 6 3:30 p.m. Game 2 3:30 p.m. 10 Arkansas David Cloninger The Gamecock - ' office or-- Based on survey data collected by the USC Office of Alcohol & Drug /\ I XX )H( )l . Programs from a random sample of USC students in November, 1998. QM.i Funding by SC DAODAS Enforcisig Underage Drinking Laws Project. ‘ «- ■