Crossover Chronicles is a relatively new blog, so we decided it was a good idea to introduce you to the crew. We’re doing that in a new feature called “Writer-Palooza.” For the next few days, we will feature one writer, introducing him to you via an original piece, his favorite basketball video, and a wildcard post on any topic that he wants.
Today we feature Trevor Zickgraf. You can find him on Twitter here.
One thing I love that other writers do is comparing movies and music to sports. I wish I could it more than I do but I guess I’m not that clever. Anyways, I was watching Late Show with David Letterman and Denzel Washington was the guest. The first thing that came to mind was now anytime I see Denzel I’m going to have Kanye and Jay-Z’s “No Church In The Wild” in my head and I’m perfect OK with that.
The second thing that stuck out to me was Denzel was talking about giving this commencement speech and it revolved around falling backwards and having a back up plan meaning you’re expecting to fail. He recommended to people that falling forward is a better approach to take. You know, plan your next step instead of making arrangements for when your current plan fails. Maybe it’s because I was half asleep, but the thought of falling forward stuck with me through the night.
I feel like this is the approach smart front offices should make. It’s what Pat Riley did with the Heat when he started clearing the books for the summer of 2010. It’s something I hope my San Antonio Spurs are doing as the Duncan era comes to an end. I know I’m planning for it with as many times as I’ve traded Tony Parker in ESPN’s Trade Machine.
I honestly don’t know what I’m going to do when the Spurs suck again. It has literally happened once since I can remember watching basketball during David Robinson’s rooke season. And that one time they sucked they got Tim Duncan the next year and my dad’s company got awesome seats for the Spurs that season, so it really wasn’t that bad. When Manu Ginobili went down I wasn’t sure what to think. Part of me thought “God I hope they tank for the next month so we can get in to the lottery”. It’s such a deep draft this season that I think a top 10 or 12 pick could help the Spurs so much moving forward.
When they don’t win the NBA title this summer (I’m doubtful anyone can beat the Heat four out of seven times), I’ll immediately start yelling for the Spurs to trade Tony Parker for a lottery pick hoping they hit a home run in the draft. I’m trying to imagine if I can deal with the Spurs turning in to the Sacramento Kings, where they went from contender to playoff contender to lottery team, where they’ve been for the last five years. I have faith in the Spurs front office to know to not prevent the free fall from happening when it does. Don’t try to build around Tony Parker the way the Kings tried to build around Mike Bibby (and Ron Artest, womp womp) once Chris Webber got traded.
I’m going to miss watching Tim Duncan play. It’s a little bit further off, but I’m going to miss watching Manu Ginobili play. I’m going to miss watching the Spurs win more than they lose. But more than anything I’m really hoping they fall forward and stay two steps ahead of everyone else instead of planning for an eventual failure that inevitably comes for any franchise. It’s coming for my beloved Spurs. I don’t know when, but it’ll be here soon. Thank God I have the trade machine to keep my imagination of a reloaded Spurs team alive.
