This is a “cut and paste” job from an email between us contributors, but it will give you some insight as to why I root for the teams I do – and why I loathe others. – R.J.
I root for the Leafs because I've always liked their style of play, especially during the Wendel Clark years. I hate the Kings because the owners (AEG) are cheap bastards. They also own the San Diego Sports Arena, a fifty year old dump. Not only will they not renovate it, but they won't bring minor league hockey back because it's not profitable enough for them.
The Kings also have the worst fans. They didn't care about the Stanley Cup until they won it. And once the curiosity went away, they stopped caring again. NO ONE talks about the Kings were I live. It's like last season never happened.
I hate the Chargers because they've threatened to move to LA for the past decade. San Diego has lost two teams to LA (Clippers, Gulls) in the past and I wanted no part of that. I don't care if they're still around. They could still "Bolt" at any time. LOL. At least you know what you're getting with the Raiders, and I've always had a healthy respect for them.
I don't root for teams that leave San Diego, so there's no way I can root for the Clippers. My family is from San Antonio, and I've been a Spurs fan since the 70s. The team and the city will always be one, and I'm loyal to that as well.
The Padres? The ownership has been a joke for about fifteen years so I mock them for fun. When they were talking about getting a AAA team in nearby Escondido last year, my thinking was, "Oh cool. We'll have two local Red Sox minor league teams to watch!"
3 comments:
And I've said this to you before, most people who grew up sports fans in NE can't relate and likely vice versa. We feel like the teams are ours and no bad owner is going to change that, exception being the Pats and we're eternally grateful for to Mr. Kraft for making sure we'll never have to decide to root for the St Louis Patriots or not.
But when you put yourself, as best you can, into the shoes of people with a totally different perspective and reality, plus having lived in SD for 4 years, I appreciate and respect how you feel, and always respected the loyalty you have to your adopted teams.
I won't repeat what I said in response to your email comment, RJ; suffice it to say that I concur with the sentiment, and as a straight up "homer," I know what you're saying. I'm born in DC, live (kinda) near DC, and I hope to die in DC--voting rights or not. I'll always be a fan of the Redskin, Capitals, Nationals, Bullets, United, Kastles (tennis--because they have Serena Williams on the team)--in that order, or until the franchise moves, that's when I'll quit 'em!
Keep rooting for the teams you want. Just because you live someplace doesn't mean that you have to support those local teams.
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