BeachedBear said:
bearister said:
I am of Walton's generation and I am into a lot of things that he is and I get and appreciate his cultural references. He is a smart man, and he'd be the first to tell you that.
With that said, there is a bullying aspect to his schtick. He simply crosses the line by going down endless winding hallways of his stream of consciousness and his attitude to both the viewers and his play by play partner is "F@uck you if you don't like it."
Bill wouldn't tolerate for 10 seconds someone spewing forth on subjects that don't interest him, yet he expects that from the viewing audience, a large percentage of which is too young to know what he is even talking about.
Unfortunately, this Cal season, Bill Walton's color commentary is probably a perfect fit for us.*
*With the exception of his patently false and unsupportable praise of our coach.
*It is too bad he had bad feet. In my opinion, he would have been one of the greatest players that ever lived. He was awesome when healthy.
I'm almost there (generationally) and generally like Walton - when he is prepared and focused. But for me, the last telecast was sort of sad.
I don't know about you, but at this stage in my life (kids are adulting, semi-retired, living the good life), I've noticed a number of my close relations (family and social) - getting to the point where they can't stop talking, but have nothing pertinent to say or can't remember details and keep on point. Many of my elders suffered from age-related mental disorders of varying degrees and it was tough to witness. Seeing it creep in with my generation is very sad.
That is kind of how I felt watching Bill on Wednesday.
The thing is, guys, I kind of agree with you, but it is pretty clear that Bill gets his status on these broadcasts because they think he appeals to viewers. I don't know if they are drastically wrong, but I'm really sure if Walton didn't have his schtick, we wouldn't be seeing him nearly as often, if at all. He'd just be another guy who played basketball a long time ago. I don't like it, but he does it because it pays.
I remember one broadcast, back when it was possible for us to lose a game and it be considered an upset, when some mid major was beating us and he literally said at one point that the other team was playing the best game in the history of basketball. I guess I can die happy. Who knew when I turned on a simple nonconference game between Cal and Northwest Montana Valley State that I would witness history that day?