Semi OT: becoming older than the players you root for...

[pdxblazers92087]

I know there are a few people around my age say 18-21 on here. For some reason it feels different for me to like cheer for guys coming out of HS since i'm just in my 3rd year of college. I also dont see that i'll have that same admiriation for players younger than me that i may have had for guys like Rasheed, Pippen, etc. Anybody else have a take on this?

[Pedro Pistolas]

I see what you're saying but I know there's alot of 40 yr olds that admire guys like Lebron / Wade

[UGA Hayes]

I know there are a few people around my age say 18-21 on here. For some reason it feels different for me to like cheer for guys coming out of HS since i'm just in my 3rd year of college. I also dont see that i'll have that same admiriation for players younger than me that i may have had for guys like Rasheed, Pippen, etc. Anybody else have a take on this?

Lol. Trust me it happens to everyone. Part of growing up.

[mojomarc]

I see what you're saying but I know there's alot of 40 yr olds that admire guys like Lebron / Wade

I kind of went through that phase with hockey (I was never a great basketball player by any means, so I've never really personally identified with the NBA guys like I do and did with hockey players). There is only one guy left in the NHL who is old enough that I played hockey against him when we were both much younger, and everyone else is younger. There was a time, though, where all the guys I knew really well were retiring where I sort of lost interest because that personal connection wasn't there. After a few years, though, my interest came back and it was the young players coming up who were so much more spectacular than the guys I knew had been towards the ends of their respective careers.

I have the feeling you'll go through something similar with basketball, but I was always a bigger Blazers fan than I was an NBA fan in general.

[listerine]

Makes you wonder, "What the hell did I do with my life?" when you see "kids" making millions playing ball. These kids are younger than me, most are less educated than me, and some will be making more in a year than I will in my entire life.

[doogul]

Haha, this is so funny to see this topic! I'm 21 and I have been thinking about the exact same thing for a couple of years now. I think about it when I'm watching college sports too. I don't see myself having a problem having the same admiration for players younger than me though. I don't think it's their age that matters...the fact is, these guys can play! It is a strange feeling though. It is definitely weird knowing that I am older than Greg Oden, lol. I agree with whoever said it's part of growing up.

[UGA Hayes]

^ The bad thing is you will slowly become more and more bitter as you realize these guys didn't have to work half as hard as you to become successful, were the same guys who were complete jerks when you were young, will get to enjoy every perk society has to offer, and have been given a chance to create a legacy that is totally out of proportion with their contribution to the society. Enjoy getting older!

Just remember this article when you get out of college and are struggling to make a living.

http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/sto ... d=tab3pos1

[zzaj]

Well, i'm 31 and it still is a little weird when I hear about very successful players born in like 1986 when I was 10. I never feel "what am I doing with my life" though, lol.

I respect these guys for finding something that they excel at and having the wherewithal to stay with it and work at it their whole lives. They just happen to be the incredibly lucky few who get paid way, way more than we do for around the same amount of work. And i'm sure that the opportunity for a monstrous paycheck played a large role in these guys sticking with it.

[TBpup]

It applies to just about everyone who is a senior or above at UofO, OSU, PSU, UofP and all the rest of the state. Take Raef LaFrentz off this roster and the average age is about that of the girl scout who tried to sell me cookies....isn't it great! This team is going to be good for a loooong time.

No matter, at 38 I can still run a fast break better than Jarrett Jack.

[d-train]

I have no problem with admiring the physical prowess of someone in their prime and with world-class physical ability. I don't admire them as people because I don't know them that way. My age in relationship to the age of NBA basketball players who I admire for their basketball ability isn't a relevant factor. Maybe if a 44-year-old NBA player was doing something on the basketball court that was admirable I might give him extra consideration for being able to perform unbelievable physical feats at an age when most people can

[listerine]

However, it doesn't mean a NBA basketball player is worth more as a person.

Come on, d-train! In your 44 years, haven't you learned that-

A. Money buys happiness.

and

B. People with money are better than people without.


Now get off my lawn, you damn kids!

[Yadadimean]

-= original quote snipped =-



Come on, d-train! In your 44 years, haven't you learned that-

A. Money buys happiness.

and

B. People with money are better than people without.


Now get off my lawn, you damn kids!

I know you were joking, but A is absolutely true. Recent psychological studies have supported the idea that people with money are generally much happier than those who don't. Doesn't seem at all far fetched to me. Whether its just that the types of people who tend to have money are just happy people in general or whether its the money (and everything that comes with it) that causes the happiness is not necessarily clear, but I know I would be a whole lot happier if I was rich. Its just easier to be happy when you don't have to worry about money. Sorry for going off topic and derailing the thread. I'm just a peasant. lol

[Goldbum]

What sucks is I'm 28. I graduated UNLV when I was 21 and in the 7 years since we have had multiple players on each of our teams that I am older than, and now the only player older than me is LaFrentz! I remember playing pickup games and dunking on Corey Benjamin (multiple times) when I came home to visit friends in corvalis. Today I'm more likely to dunk a donut and bi**h about my sore back. Oh well my wife is smokin hot and I have 3 beautiful kids. Still watching this team makes me feel OLD.

[farzi]

Martell is about a week younger than me...when he got drafted it felt like my hair started going gray.

[Wizenheimer]

next year, with a starting frontcourt of oden-aldridge-webster, their cumulative age would make them eligible for full social security benefits.

when you get old enough, you think in those terms...

[hkphooey]

Yeah, there was a point a few years back when I realized that most of the players I was rooting for were younger, but I didn't have a problem with it. In general, when you get over 30, it seems like anyone in professional sports is going to be younger than you. That's just how it goes.

[cucad8]

See, rooting for players younger than me was never a problem. The big thing for me is seeing a guy, mainly in football, who is 31, or 32, like Shawn Alexander or something, and thinking, wow, he's old and washed up. And then realizing half of my friends are that age, and just starting careers. Strange world.

[Tim Lehrbach]

^ The bad thing is you will slowly become more and more bitter as you realize these guys didn't have to work half as hard as you to become successful, were the same guys who were complete jerks when you were young, will get to enjoy every perk society has to offer, and have been given a chance to create a legacy that is totally out of proportion with their contribution to the society. Enjoy getting older!

Oh, whatever.

[Blaze the Nugz]

Its just weird because when you are younger you look up to those people like I look up to LeBron. But when I'm 30, who am I going to look up to? I can't look up to someone younger than me.

[mojomarc]

-= original quote snipped =-



Oh, whatever.

+1