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After Tuesday night’s 109-86 beating the Boston Celtics handed to the Detroit Pistons in the young NBA season, the real story that emerged wasn’t about Boston’s 3-1 start or the 23 point difference in the score but about how Mean Old Kevin Garnett hurt poor Charlie Villanueva’s feelings.  Later in the evening, Villanueva of the Pistons took to his Twitter account to complain to his more than 117,000 followers about the thing KG said to him on the court while scoring 22 points against his team. 

Over the course of 2 petulant tweets, Villanueva wrote: 1. KG talks alot of crap, he's prob never been in a fight, I would love to get in a ring with him, I will expose him, and 2. KG called me a cancer patient, I'm pissed because, u know how many people died from cancer, and he's tossing it like it's a joke, I wouldn't even trip about that, but a cancer patient, I know way 2 many people who passed away from it, and I have a special place 4 those. 

The inspiration for the alleged trash talking that offended Villanueva stems from the fact that he suffers from alopecia universalis, a medical condition that results in hair loss.  Although Kevin Garnett released a statement which was corroborated by his head coach Doc Rivers clarifying that his words were misunderstood and that he’d never be insensitive about cancer, the sports media world took to the story and ran.  Questions of whether or not Garnett crossed the line, thinks lightly of cancer patients, or is simply an insensitive asshole were the stories of the day. 

Jim Rome lambasted Garnett for coming up with a “joke” that just wasn’t very funny or sensitive to the plight of people fighting cancer.  My Lakers fan co-worker pointed out that KG is beginning to be hated more and more by people b/c of his raging attitude.  Suddenly, players of the NBA and its long standing tradition of trash talking ways are supposed to temper their words while playing?  What kind of world would we be living in if after Magic Johnson played Larry Bird in the Finals he went to a press conference and complained about all of the mean, untrue things Bird said about his Mama, sister, and wife? 

Taking to Twitter with the hurtful comments Garnett may have said to you in order to convince petty NBA fans that he is a mean guy is disgraceful.  In reality, we shouldn’t care if Garnett called Villanueva a cancer patient because of his hair loss.  We shouldn’t encourage Villanueva to scamper to his Twitter page and cowardly challenge Garnett to a fight as his audience of supporters kisses his ass.  He’s only proven to me that he’s simply another “Keyboard Gangster;” just a loser that attacks message boards, comment pages, and social websites with insults and promises to inflict pain through finger-flicking fury behind the safety of their keyboard.  These cyber thugs can’t threaten to “fuck you up” fast enough or tell you to “come around my neighborhood talking that shit” unless their fingers are swiftly on the Home Keys. 

Do we really respect Charlie Villanueva for resorting to this craven tactic rather than taking his 23 point beating like a professional?  The best way to shut up a trash talker on the field of play is to win.  Based on the results from Tuesday night’s game, I’d say that Garnett’s insults to get under the skin of Villanueva worked exactly as planned.  Shut up, stop crying, and play basketball, you Sufferer of Alopecia Universalis. 


--JJJ

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