"Everything has its beauty but not everyone sees it." - Confucius.
In a Eureka! moment by yours truly, I have decided that all subsequents will have quotes from one of the wisest men in history, Confucius. This quote actually pertains to the post, so read on to find out.
Sitting in the USC Law Library waiting out L.A. traffic. For those who don't use it, Sigalert gives a nice updated traffic map that highlights which routes are clogged with a color-coded system of red (meaning slow), yellow, and green (meaning go), for those who are common sense-challenged.
I've made it a habit recently of introducing myself in this manner: "Hi, I'm Robert. I'm orginally from suburban Chicago but moved out to L.A. for law school. I'm 22 turning 23 in May. O, and my favorite basketball player is Joakim Noah."
The infatuation for Joakim Noah is relatively new, a trend I developed after his hot start this NBA season and my consistent ability to draft him in my fantasy leagues. Also, the Bulls are one team I haven't given up on w/ my Chicago roots (ahem, Cubs) and at times they're actually bearable to watch, as witnessed by their 7-game marathon last playoff w/ the Celtics. O, and I also shelled out $40 before Christmas to get my first-ever official basketball jersey, a very loose-fitting (unfortunately I totally overestimated my muscle mass/body tone and got an extra large) Joakim Noah jersey. Red.
Ok, so why the Noah love? Well, on first look, he wears #13, which is ballsy. It shows defiance against the traditional norms of bad luck and a "I'm good no matter what" attitude. I like it.
He's ugly. OK, let's get through the cutesy-tootsy fluff that people throw out a lot, Joakim Noah is NOT a good-looking man. With the hair net-looking, spiders-may-come-out-of-there-any-moment ratttail going, along with the split front tooth and awkward looking walk, there is also "the tornado": Noah's version of a basketball shot, a sort of twisting, spine-curdling, how'd-he-even-get-that-in-the-air sort of hurl at the basket, nothing about Noah to the naked eye is graceful, elegant, beautiful. SAT Analogy: Joakim Noah is to beauty as Mike Tyson is to stable.
But wait, here's the Confucius quote kicking into effect: there's beauty there. It's beautiful how scrappy Noah is, how he does all the dirty work for the team, how he hustles back on defense, how he dives for loose balls, how he helps out in the paint, how he battles the opposing team's big night in and night out, how he gives it for teammates. His 11.7 points and 1.7 blks are good-looking, but the 12.3 rebounds per game and FOUR offensive rebounds per game really looking, like watching the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Pageant night in and night out. The beauty is that Noah's beauty comes from being exactly the opposite, being ugly, mixing it up down low, slowing down the game, prying the ball loose, playing ugly... but VERY effective.
So Noah's got some physical gifts: he's 7 feet exactly and clearly has some hops, enough to dunk. But let's face it: he's not the most talented of athletes. Line him up next to the other All-Stars that will be named this year to the All-Star Game, and he'd probably be the last one picked by the casual viewer. In fact, I would say him on the court is like Snookie at Karma (Jersey Shore bar): guys are not gonna try to hook up with her first, but if pressed, they might give her a ring. And yet that's what Snookie and Noah have in common: they give the best with what they have. That, to me, is beautiful. Both know that they don't have the most God-given talent, that they can't rely on their skills along. So they go the extra mile: they do the best that they can with what they got. That's what I root for. Call me crazy, but I'm a big Snookie and Joakim Noah fan.
And here's the segue back to myself: I AM Joakim Noah. Before you dismiss the last statement as dribble, lemme explain: on the basketball court, clearly I am not the best skilled player. One look at me and people usually dub me as the following: 1. Asian, 2. engineer, 3. chess player, 4. not athletic. Actually, 3 out of those 4 are accurate: I was not an engineer. But what I do is, I work my butt off on the court. No matter if the score's 11-1 or 7-7, I'm running up and down the court, chasing after loose balls, going full speed, cuz I know if I don't, I am NOT good. I can't rely on my other skills; I got none. All I got as a competitive advantage is hustle, I lose that I got nothing. That's how I roll; that's my M.O. Seeing Joakim play gives me some justification, some realization that that's a legitimate way to play, and seeing him succeed is like watching me succeed. Thanks, Joakim, for inspiring me and showing beauty for "ugly" players everywhere. Now please, please, lead the Bulls to the playoffs.
Fantasize on,
Robert Yan
In a Eureka! moment by yours truly, I have decided that all subsequents will have quotes from one of the wisest men in history, Confucius. This quote actually pertains to the post, so read on to find out.
Sitting in the USC Law Library waiting out L.A. traffic. For those who don't use it, Sigalert gives a nice updated traffic map that highlights which routes are clogged with a color-coded system of red (meaning slow), yellow, and green (meaning go), for those who are common sense-challenged.
I've made it a habit recently of introducing myself in this manner: "Hi, I'm Robert. I'm orginally from suburban Chicago but moved out to L.A. for law school. I'm 22 turning 23 in May. O, and my favorite basketball player is Joakim Noah."
The infatuation for Joakim Noah is relatively new, a trend I developed after his hot start this NBA season and my consistent ability to draft him in my fantasy leagues. Also, the Bulls are one team I haven't given up on w/ my Chicago roots (ahem, Cubs) and at times they're actually bearable to watch, as witnessed by their 7-game marathon last playoff w/ the Celtics. O, and I also shelled out $40 before Christmas to get my first-ever official basketball jersey, a very loose-fitting (unfortunately I totally overestimated my muscle mass/body tone and got an extra large) Joakim Noah jersey. Red.
Ok, so why the Noah love? Well, on first look, he wears #13, which is ballsy. It shows defiance against the traditional norms of bad luck and a "I'm good no matter what" attitude. I like it.
He's ugly. OK, let's get through the cutesy-tootsy fluff that people throw out a lot, Joakim Noah is NOT a good-looking man. With the hair net-looking, spiders-may-come-out-of-there-any-moment ratttail going, along with the split front tooth and awkward looking walk, there is also "the tornado": Noah's version of a basketball shot, a sort of twisting, spine-curdling, how'd-he-even-get-that-in-the-air sort of hurl at the basket, nothing about Noah to the naked eye is graceful, elegant, beautiful. SAT Analogy: Joakim Noah is to beauty as Mike Tyson is to stable.
But wait, here's the Confucius quote kicking into effect: there's beauty there. It's beautiful how scrappy Noah is, how he does all the dirty work for the team, how he hustles back on defense, how he dives for loose balls, how he helps out in the paint, how he battles the opposing team's big night in and night out, how he gives it for teammates. His 11.7 points and 1.7 blks are good-looking, but the 12.3 rebounds per game and FOUR offensive rebounds per game really looking, like watching the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Pageant night in and night out. The beauty is that Noah's beauty comes from being exactly the opposite, being ugly, mixing it up down low, slowing down the game, prying the ball loose, playing ugly... but VERY effective.
So Noah's got some physical gifts: he's 7 feet exactly and clearly has some hops, enough to dunk. But let's face it: he's not the most talented of athletes. Line him up next to the other All-Stars that will be named this year to the All-Star Game, and he'd probably be the last one picked by the casual viewer. In fact, I would say him on the court is like Snookie at Karma (Jersey Shore bar): guys are not gonna try to hook up with her first, but if pressed, they might give her a ring. And yet that's what Snookie and Noah have in common: they give the best with what they have. That, to me, is beautiful. Both know that they don't have the most God-given talent, that they can't rely on their skills along. So they go the extra mile: they do the best that they can with what they got. That's what I root for. Call me crazy, but I'm a big Snookie and Joakim Noah fan.
And here's the segue back to myself: I AM Joakim Noah. Before you dismiss the last statement as dribble, lemme explain: on the basketball court, clearly I am not the best skilled player. One look at me and people usually dub me as the following: 1. Asian, 2. engineer, 3. chess player, 4. not athletic. Actually, 3 out of those 4 are accurate: I was not an engineer. But what I do is, I work my butt off on the court. No matter if the score's 11-1 or 7-7, I'm running up and down the court, chasing after loose balls, going full speed, cuz I know if I don't, I am NOT good. I can't rely on my other skills; I got none. All I got as a competitive advantage is hustle, I lose that I got nothing. That's how I roll; that's my M.O. Seeing Joakim play gives me some justification, some realization that that's a legitimate way to play, and seeing him succeed is like watching me succeed. Thanks, Joakim, for inspiring me and showing beauty for "ugly" players everywhere. Now please, please, lead the Bulls to the playoffs.
Fantasize on,
Robert Yan
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