Mark Cuban calls out Bill Simmons on Twitter
Maybe Mavs owner Mark Cuban is feeling empowered after he incinerated Skip Bayless in his own backyard on First Take, because Sunday night on Twitter he went after ESPN's top dog - Bill Simmons. What would cause Cuban to fire a shot towards Grantland's sovereign soil? It began when The Sports Guy didn't exactly give Dallas a ringing endorsement for their offseason signings of former Clippers teammates Chris Kaman and Elton Brand on Friday...
Put it this way: I wasn't crazy about Elton Brand and Chris Kaman playing together in 2006 when they were still good.
— Bill Simmons (@sportsguy33) July 13, 2012
The Shark Tank star must have caught wind of Simmons' tweet as he eventually sent these stinging replies:
@sportsguy33. They next smart personnel comment you mae will be your first
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) July 16, 2012
@CmackChase @sportsguy33 possibly because he has never had any involvement with a championship team.
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) July 16, 2012
Whoa. I guess Cuban isn't a fan of the Picasso of the Trade Machine, maybe he's a Rembrandt kind of guy. These aren't just shots fired, these are cannonballs. Cuban has been a guest on the BS Report previously at the Sloan Sports Conference earlier this year, although things got very weird and very controversial thanks to the interview.
(Side note, what makes this story even better is Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert retweeting Cuban's dig at Simmons. That's the Twitter equivalent of trying to help Dwight Howard land on the Superteam of his choice. C'mon, Dan.)
Sure, Simmons may not have won a championship or been a part of any franchise... but he did write the book on basketball. That may or may not actually count for something. Regardless, I generally like Cuban, but the whole "he's never won a championship so he has no room to talk" argument is one of the most tiresome in all of sports. If that was the case than every one of us without a championship ring could never say anything worth meaning. And Charles Barkley would be out of a job. That's not the kind of world I want to live in.
The popcorn is on standby if and when Simmons responds.
Take a shot at him by telling him why he's wrong about Brand and Kaman. Suggesting that he's not qualified to give an opinion solely because he's never been involved in running a professional team only makes Cuban look foolish.
It is annoying how Simmons seems to think he's the only sane person in a world of crazy people. And he all too seriously has made comments about how he wants to be a GM. When you make your writing an application letter you should be ready to take some shots.
Putting aside the fact that Simmons is a very funny and talented writer, it is obvious that he religiously follows the NBA and is passionate about it. His opinions ought to be respected if for no other reason than the colossal amount of time he spends on the subject. The fact that because he was never a professional player, GM or team executive means his opinions are meaningless or should not be publicly stated is completely bogus. I love what Cuban did to Bayless (who is a jackass who does zero research and knows virtually nothing about everything) but the Mavs owner is off-base on this battle.
His argument might be weak but it's about time somebody took some kind of shot at Simmons... never have liked Bill Simmons. Don't really get his popularity online..
To be fair, I think Cuban meant that being that he DID put together a championship team, he should be given a little leeway and not instantly criticized by someone who's never ran a basketball team, and thus never won a championship.
